Gary
Charly pads are like Marmite. Some love them, some hate them.
But are they expensive? As individual items probably yes. But if you clean substantially sized areas, a couple of hundred pounds for Charly's as opposed to say £500 for a set of textile pads to clean the same area, then Charly's look like really good value.
Some like microfibre pads but need to use a different medium sometimes to agitate.
My advice is to try one or two different pads at a time. Sometimes you can borrow from a colleague, some you may need to buy. Find what works for you and whatever the cost, they will be a small investment for something that can earn you £££££££££'s.
Safe and happy cleaning

The Ken