I live in Fairfax, VA and commute to Springfield, VA for work.
Congrats on the job prospect. You are correct in that some of the DC suburbs are absurdly expensive. You are also correct in prioritizing commute (I commute ~25min each way, and it's the shortest I've had since I moved here 9 years ago).
Areas close to Mclean:
-Mclean - A very woodsy, and highly expensive area to live. Executives from a lot of local companies reside here. Not very bike friendly, as some of the local roads are sort of rural-ish with no shoulders and no sidewalks. Very pretty place to live, but really expensive.
- Tysons Corner - I highly recommend you stay the hell away from living here. It is a clusterfuck of malls, stores, and traffic. There are condos in the area, which may make it tempting since it's essentially the closest neighborhood to your job.
- Vienna - This area has an "old town" sort of feel, while still being out in the suburbs. There are a lot of smaller shops to frequent, and it has prime access to one of the areas largest and well-kept bike trails (the Washington and Old Dominion (W&OD)). This is the end-point for one of the Metro train lines, and can be convenient for getting into the city when need be. Depending on where in Mclean you'd work, you can either take backroads or the beltway to get to work. Shouldn't be more than 20-30mins usually. I like Vienna.
- Dunn Loring / Merrifield - These neighborhoods are more filled with apartment buildings and light industrial, but are close to the beltway and metro stops. Not a very interesting place, but cheaper.
- East/West Falls Church - Older neighborhoods, close to Metro stops, smaller/older homes with some apartments. To me, these neighborhoods give me the "old rundown strip mall" sort of feeling. But, they're inside the beltway, convenient, and generally cheaper to live in.
- Fairfax - "Old town" Fairfax is the intersection of Main St and Chain Bridge Rd. There is a recently renovated area with a nice public library, nice little restaurants, and often lots of local festivals. We live right on Main street here, and there are 2 shopping centers within 1mi of us, and it's pretty family friendly. I like the proximity that we still have to major transportation, while staying out of the majorly "high priced" areas.
Any other further neighborhoods, and you start looking at a 45min commute I think. I'd be more than happy to answer any other questions.