Update I have come to a decision. Thank you to all who contributed suggestions. Please feel free to keep the discussion going to help others.
My pixel 6 is about 3 years old and the only wear I can see on it is a single little micro scratch in the top right corner of the screen that I can’t see without a light reflecting off of it. I don’t bother with a screen protector, just a thin silicon case. Battery is fine for about 2 days of normal use even though I regularly use a wireless charger.