I think it's essential if you're serious about learning. For Spanish at least you can find people $4-$6 an hour which can fit into some seriously lean budgets. I think it's one of the best ways to spend an hour.

I currently chat with my teacher every morning on my bluetooth headphones while exercising in my backyard (of course, confirming first that this wouldn't annoy her). Most productive hour of my day, and I she likes the certainty of me committing to a daily time slot.

Cool way to build friendships too. In April I'm visiting her in Venezuela. Though I recommend using a service like https://www.conversationexchange.com/ for a more overt way to meet different people while practicing language.

Author here. Italki is a wonderful tool and is undoubtedly what brought me from being to formulate rote Duolingo sentences to being able to have conversations for hours on end. I think Italki or some suitable replacement that gets you 1-on-1 attention for long periods of time speaking is absolutely essential if you want to have extended conversations with people.