Lifting a Cherokee on a budget!
 

You might be able to build a "bastard" pack up that high, basically some S10 or Dodge Dakota leaf packs that you chop up and put in as an add a leaf type of arrangement. Then source some shocks from an OEM application that will work for that height. Coil springs are pretty cheap but you could also just add some spacers if you wanted to go really cheap. I wouldnt' bother with lift blocks of any kind or height on the back of an XJ.

The cheapest way to lift a Cherokee is to buy one that's already been lifted.

How much do you want to spend? Under a grand? Under 2 grand? The higher you go lift wise, the more expensive you'll get if you want the thing to drive anywhere near as good as it would stock.

You can get Zone springs relatively cheap and they seem to be well received.

I gave up caring how much money gets put into my rig a long time ago.

What is your definition of a 'budget'?

My brother bought his XJ with a 3" lift and 31s,
It was just a spacer up front, 3" AAL, and longer shocks.

Works super well for highway driving and dirt roads, but having learned from my last couple XJs get quality parts the first time if you plan on spending any time on trails.
I had a 'budget' rock crawler while in college, and the 'budget' parts never worked for the long term.

Just my $0.02

For a 4.5" lift on a budget I would get the 4.5" RE coils from Amazon for $100, some adjustable lower control arms, an adjustable track bar, longer sway bar links or sway bar drop brackets, a 3 or 3.5" leaf pack for the rear or make your own with Ranger/ s10/ Dakota leaf springs, adjustable shackles, a transfer case drop, and whatever deal you can get on some shocks, and don't forget to relocate the brake lines either. You can do all of this for $600-900 depending on what kind of deals you find.

I know Rough Country lifts aren't held to very high regards here on the forums but that is my best advice. You can get a 4.5" lift for a little over $400 that comes with shocks, new front springs, add a leaf for the rear, lower control arms, longer sway bar links, and I'm sure I'm missing a few things. It's not the best ride quality but it would be able to handle mild offroading at a decent price with good reliability, and it doesn't take terribly long to install. I've had mine on my XJ for around 2 years now and the only major issue I had was my rear springs collapsed which was more of a mileage issue than anything, 4.5 inch lift spring packs ran me about $250 from Morris 4x4 which were a nice addition but are not a must have when you first lift your Jeep. I also did an SYE on my T-Case which also isn't necessary right away. The lift kit I mentioned above comes with T-Case drop spacers which are a bit of a pain to install but saves you from spending 500 bucks for a SYE kit and a new rear driveshaft as long as you don't mind listening to some vibration when going highway speeds.

Assuming your starting Jeep is stock, any Add a Leaf system is going to come up short. Even the youngest Jeep at this point is almost 19 years old and will have clapped out leaf springs even on lightly used XJs. Spring the extra money and go for the full leaf replacement.

I fully agree, I was just saying that depending on how budget you are willing to be, it can be done short term to get the next pay check or two to afford the full leaf replacement.

buying add a leafs and going thru all the trouble and wasting u bolts then upgrading to full leafs on your next payday is a total waste of your budget dollars

The U-bolts were included in the kit and the installation of the add a leafs was not hard at all, so it really didn't cost anything extra. When it came time to put the new packs on the U-bolts were still be to be re-used even a year after the initial install, so there should be no issue using them for a few weeks or even a month or two.