Seems to me most of the 'snake boots' were pretty costly. A low cost alternative might be the snake-proof, snake resistant if you tread the fine print. (The large print giveth, the small print taketh away.)

A friend got a set and claims they have saved him. He is a surveyor's helper and time pressures don't allow the sorts of normal behaviors that limit the chances of a bite. He doesn't get to skirt the palmetto thickets that are several feet deep in composting fronds. Thickets that are prime habitat for mice and snakes. He is expected to charge in armed with a machete, for clearing branches out of the way of the beam, and a reflector on a pole.

What he got was a set of OD green plastic gaiters that cover from instep to just below the knee. He claims they had worked but readily admits that while he has seen many snakes, and a few had clearly struck out in his general direction, he has never felt or seen a snake actually bite the gaiters and, even though they are now worn and scratched, there are no marks on them that are clearly a result of a snake bite.

I suspect that the main benefit has been peace of mind. A worthy enough goal and outcome. In that particular case the $20 they cost was likely worth it.

Of course most of us don't have a job that requires us to hardheadedly stomp through prime snake habitat at a near run. Most of the rest of us get by quite well using common sense, taking a little time, poking a walking stick into the rough spots, and generally just being careful.

I read about a rescue climber in canyon territory out west claim similar protective devices were a good investment. Evidently in the rush to get down to people needing rescue he does a lot of stepping off blindly into dark spots where snakes tend to congregate. He claimed that the devices had saved him being bit. More than once snakes had bit the boots/armor, I forget what form the protection took, and he had to manually disengage the fangs.

I think most people can get along without such things but there may be jobs and situations that justify the extra trouble. If I was going to buy protection I would lean more toward the armor gaiters/leggings as they seem to sell for less and allow you to use your normal boots and just supplement them with leggings when the situation call for it.