Americans got their biggest raises in 40 years. Inflation took most of it.

TL;DR

The typical American's paycheck saw its fastest growth since the early 1980s, increasing by 38% between 2019 and the first half of 2026.
Consumer prices rose by 30% over the same seven-year period, consuming approximately 80% of the typical worker's raise.
The real increase in weekly spending power for the typical worker was about $70, a gain of less than 1% per year.
Inflation peaked in June 2022 with a 9% year-over-year increase, the highest since 1981.
Gains were not evenly distributed; roughly half of workers beat inflation, a quarter broke even, and a quarter fell behind.
The lowest-earning tenth of workers saw pay rise 9.4% after inflation, while the best-paid quarter saw only a 2.6% increase.
Occupations like nursing and home health aides, childcare workers, and waiters beat inflation, while teachers and letter carriers fell behind.
Despite inflation, the typical worker's pay rose 5.9% after inflation from 2019 to 2026, a better performance than most seven-year stretches since 1979.

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