There are a number of elements of social equality, all of which relate to how a person is received and treated within a community. The term 'social equality' might be used to refer to equality of opportunities, equality of how they are treated by society, or equality of social status (i.e. no person is 'better' or 'worse' than another). Social equality is hard to achieve and is threatened by those beliefs that some characteristics or lack thereof are inherently better or worse than others, such as sexism, racism, ageism, ableism, homophobia, etc.

Political equality is the belief that everyone is equal before the law. For example, each person has the right to representation in court and to have their voices heard in political elections. Political equality was the focus of both the American Revolution and the French Revolution and is embodied by the opening lines of the Declaration of Independence (''...all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness...''). Political equality serves as a goal for political systems but most argue that it is never completely achievable.

Economic equality refers to fairness in economics and, in theory, suggests that everyone should have equal access to the same wealth. Other elements of economic equality include the belief that everyone should be taxed the same way and all people should have access to the same financial assistance and aid, when needed. For instance, the wage gap between men and women for the same job is an economic equality issue.