My interpretation of Mask of the Wild is that players with this feature are able to hide in situations that other players are unable to. For example, a wood elf can attempt a stealth roll in heavy rain, while other players would not be able to because it is too easy for them to be seen without this feature. This has been my interpretation based on a fair bit of reading and sticks to RAW more than offering advantage etc.
Unfortunately I am struggling to find ways to apply this feature in most circumstances. The feature only helps in situations associated with natural phenomena, so towns, dungeons, vessels, palaces, etc. are largely excluded from the feature. But when I consider a forest, I recognize that all players can attempt to roll stealth checks by hiding behind trees easily enough. It seems silly to imagine a situation in which only a wood elf can hide but others cannot (you're in a forest, but all of the trees are so skinny that only a person with Mask of the Wild can hide?).
It seems Mask of the Wild is only helpful when natural phenomena are not enough for the average player to hide, but are still enough for a wood elf to hide (moderately tall grass, short bushes, very light forest, heavy rain or snow in open spaces, and moderate but not heavy mist outside of forests), which seems relatively limited. In addition, I would probably need to make effort as a DM to create these types of situations specifically to allow mark of the wild to be beneficial. I don't typically differentiate between forest and light forest, or tall grass and taller grass.
I am running a campaign in the jungles of Chult, which presumably almost always offers an opportunity for any player to attempt to hide, which makes things worse.
How does Mask of the Wild apply its benefits in practice? When is this a beneficial feature?
This question is different from the other question How does the Wood Elf's Mask of the Wild trait work, in terms of flavor? as it relates to the mechanical benefits of the feature, rather than flavour.