Staples and basic goods are as cheap as ever. Rice/beans/oatmeal/frozen veggies (simple meals cooked at home), basic clothing items, econobox cars, TV antenna, etc. If you purchased the same staple basket as your grandparents did, your purchasing power has probably gone way up.
But our cultural expectation for what constitutes a good standard of living has increased dramatically. People define "the good life" as eating out frequently, drinking at bars, fast fashion, cars that are fun to drive, new furniture, subscription boxes, etc.
Health insurance and housing (in many markets) have gone way up in relative terms, but so has our demand for fancier housing (laundry rooms, dishwashers, granite countertops, garages, closet space, etc) as well as way more square footage per person.
This is one of the core messages of Mustachianism. When someone complains about having to cook at home, they're ignoring the incredible luxury of having enough food to eat that day. Someone complaining about their shitty beater car is probably still driving one of the most reliable cars ever manufactured. By almost any objective standard, basic living conditions on Earth are better than they have ever been for an increasing swath of the population. But you have to get off the consumerist treadmill of hedonistic adaptation first to realize that pursuit of more material goods won't make you happy.