Are you better off than you were four years ago? It can be a murky picture for many

In the lead-up to the first presidential debate, both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump have been urging voters to ask themselves the question made famous by Ronald Reagan: Are you better off than you were four years ago?

With the economy among the top issues for voters, each candidate has been using their own set of data points to create a favorable economic picture of their time in office. But for many voters, the answer will vary greatly depending on their geography, profession, age, race and lifestyle — not to mention the political lens they see each candidate through.

Hourly workers, especially those in food service and hospitality, have seen significant wage gains to help offset inflation. But retirees and full-time caregivers have been unable to take advantage of a strong job market. Homeowners have seen their wealth grow amid soaring home prices. But prospective buyers have had to contend with rising rents and interest rates. White households have benefited the most from record stock prices compared to Black and Hispanic households, which have fewer investments in the stock market.

“It all kind of depends on where you sit,” said Julia Pollak, chief economist for ZipRecruiter. “Income inequality has narrowed while wealth inequality has widened. Wages have grown for low wage workers, but have been stagnant for a lot of white collar workers.”

But while there isn’t one story of the U.S. economy, NBC News looked at several key categories that most directly affect households to show how those indicators have changed in recent years and the effect those could have on voters.

Wages

Over the past year, wages have started to increase faster than prices after about two years of consumers seeing their