[jozvolskyef]

Suppose I join the workforce at 26, and earn an average of 65k per year while in the <30 cohort, while my friend joins at 19 and earns an average of 55k per year, in this statistic I'll seem better off even though my friend earned 345k more.

[antisthenes]

How are you not better off? You obviously had the means to sustain yourself for 7 years somehow without working.

They had to spend 14,000+ hours in order to earn those wages. Also depends on what their expenses are and if they are saving anything.

[jozvolskyef]

If we are to consider the definition of "better off" in strictly financial terms, the answer is clear. However, if we take into account a definition of "better off" that includes factors such as life satisfaction, I don't have the data to answer.