+1 to everything that you stated!
That price structure is essentially the same as what my Subaru dealer charges, and after seeing that price quote I have done it myself ever since–at a substantial saving.
If somebody is ready and willing to do the job himself, it is really easy.
The filter is there for a variety of reasons and should be periodically replaced. If OP doesn’t want to replace it themselves, and doesn’t want to pay to have the dealership replace it, either have it done at an independent shop or ask some car-knowledgeable teenager in the neighborhood if they’d do you a favor and replace it for you. The instructions how to do it are usually in the owner’s manual. The replacement filter itself can be purchased at the dealership or might possibly cost less if purchased at the local auto parts store. If the auto parts store doesn’t stock it, they can order it for you. It should be periodically replaced tho, imo. Check the owner’s manual for how long that interval is for you car.
Gee, what a novel theory.
The cabin air filter for my Outback is the same one that is used in various Lexus and Toyota models, and–yes–it costs substantially less to buy it at an auto parts store, instead of at the dealership’s parts department. And, the installation instructions are frequently included in the packaging of the aftermarket brands.
Just a hint for those who may be attempting this maintenance procedure for the first time:
It is not unusual for the procedure to require that you…pinch…the sides of the glovebox in order to make it easier to drop the glovebox, so that you can expose the cabin air filter.
During frigid temperature conditions, it is not unusual for the plastic material of the glovebox to become somewhat rigid, but the easy fix for that situation is to warm that plastic material with a blow-dryer for a couple of minutes before trying to manipulate that plastic material.
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Same here
I replace my cabin filter at every oil change, which is every 5000 miles
The MSRP for the common Toyota cabin air filters are $18.95.
Walmart (Fram); $16.99
O’Reilly’s (Wix); $14.99
Off brand filters can be found for $7
That may be the on-line price from a Dealer…But not the price if I walk into the local Toyota Dealer. The cheapest I’ve seen is $40 (and that was almost 2 years ago). Probably more expensive now.
I can buy a Denso filter (the OEM manufacturer for Toyota) at the local parts store for about $20.
It depends a lot on where you park and where and how much you drive. The cabin air filter on our 2007 Toyota has been replaced 3 times and the one on our 2012 Mazda just once. We drive little, park inside and avoid parking under trees.
In all cases there was some dirt on the filters but not enough to impede air flow. Changing with every oil change is excessive unless you drive in the desert or a severely polluted area.
“severely polluted area.”
That describes my general area . . . ESPECIALLY where I park my car at work
I have absolutely zero choice about the outside parking spot, so that’s that
I understand!
The discounted on-line price for filter P/N 87139-YZZ20 is $14.21
Toyota’s MSRP is $18.95 but dealers can charge more, forty dollars seems a bit extreme.
Just curious. After decades of building cars without cabin air filters, what was the motivation for manufacturers to begin using them?
What problem were they trying to solve?
Potentially unacceptable market share. 
The air conditioner evaporator core collects the debris in vehicles without a cabin filter. This is the evaporator from my 2000 Dodge, I replaced the heater core Saturday evening. It is not too dirty, I have found more in 5 year old cars and the leaves and dirt stays damp during the summer from condensation.
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The owners manual for my 2012 Camry says the cabin filter should be removed and dirt tapped out of it at 1500 miles and replaced at 30000.
That does not stop the oil change place I take my car to for state inspection from trying to sell me a new air filter and cabin filter. I go there because they don’t do any real repairs so have no motive to sell you unnecessary repairs based on state inspection.
This year they started carrying batteries so, you guessed it, they recommended a new battery 
To save a buck, one of my high school buddies used to go to the gas station and use the compressed air tire filler gadget they provide to the customers to blow the dirt out of his engine air filter. Seemed to work ok. I wonder if anybody still does that? I wouldn’t risk it on the engine air filter myself, but it seems like it might work ok for a cabin air filter.
Three months ago I stopped at a gas station to add air to a leaking tire while on my way to work. The price on the machine was $1.50, I don’t know what the jackpot paid, I drove away on my low tire.
Some maintenance schedules called for cleaning the cabin air filter at 15,000 miles after/before replacement with compressed air. The latest filters in Lexus vehicles all have a carbon layer and are labeled “Do not clean”. These are scheduled to be replaced every 10,000 miles.
A tip for those with new cabin filters, lock your glove box and provide only the valet key. This will save the mechanic time, he won’t have to empty your glove box and inspect the cabin air filter.
Cleaning the engine air filter with compressed air can have dire consequences:
The compressed air seems dubious.
But using a shop vac on the cabin air filter (pulling air backward through to the size with the dirt) might be ok.