The only people who would actually equate them are people not professionally using these tools everyday.

Even paid apps like affinity designer are a fraction of the functionality of Illustrator.

Again, a great product but people are just dead wrong if they compare them as an absolute.

While someone who just needs a functional vector graphics editor and is not being paid to use adobe software might prefer inkscape. Speaking from personal experience, there.

This is a common response when someone says something is better. It doesn’t mean they’re saying you need the better stuff or judging folks who don’t need it.