Free for services that use Sign in with Apple. Need iCloud+ for generating addresses outside of that.
Also, 99 cents a month for the cheapest plan isn’t too bad for everything it gives you. If you’re in the iOS/Apple ecosystem, it’s a worthwhile purchase.
iCloud+ is extremely affordable at $1/mo, tho. It's- sort of like free. And you get 50GB storage as part of that $1 plan.