How much US presidents have been paid since George Washington

How much US presidents have been paid since George Washington Trump is one of three presidents who donated their presidential salaries. Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images How much do you get paid to be the leader of the free world?Since 2001, the president of the United States has been paid $400,000 a year. Compare that to 1789, when the US elected its first president, and the presidential salary was $25,000 a year.While that may sound like a fraction of today's paycheck, the salary's value has actually decreased by about half when adjusted for inflation.In the 237 years since, the president has only received a handful of raises, although, of course, the office comes with plenty of other perks.Here's how the president's annual compensation has changed since America's founding. For the first 84 years of the United States' existence, the president earned $25,000 a year. George Washington in 1779. GraphicaArtis/Getty Images When Washington was elected in 1789, the task fell to Congress to decide what the presidential compensation should be.In 2026 dollars, that $25,000 salary would be equal to approximately $949,000, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' consumer price index.In all, Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, Martin Van Buren, William Henry Harrison, John Tyler, James K. Polk, Zachary Taylor, Millard Fillmore, Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, Abraham Lincoln, and Andrew Johnson all made $25,000. The first change came in 1873, when Ulysses S. Grant was the president. The annual salary was raised to $50,000. Ulysses S. Grant. Hulton Archive/Getty Images By 1873, that $25,000 had depreciated to about $696,000 in today's money. A sizable bump to $50,000 a year made the salary worth almost $1.4 million in 2026 dollars.Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, James A. Garfield, Chester A. Arthur, Grover Cleveland, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley, and Theodore Roosevelt all made $50,000. That lasted for 36 years, until 1909, during William Howard Taft's term. It was raised to $75,000. William Howard Taft. MPI/Getty Images The $50,000 salary lasted for about three decades. In 1909, it was raised to $75,000, or about $2.75 million in 2026 dollars.Taft, Woodrow Wilson, Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Harry Truman (during his first term) all earned $75,000. Another 40 years passed before it was raised again in 1949 during Harry S. Truman's second term, when it reached $100,000. Harry S. Truman. Bettman/Getty Images By 1949, that $75,000 had depreciated in value to about $1 million in 2026 dollars. So Congress voted to raise it to $100,000, or about $1.4 million in today's currency.Truman, Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, and Lyndon B. Johnson all made $100,000 a year. In 1969, Congress raised the salary to $200,000. President Richard Nixon (right) greets former President Lyndon B. Johnson (left). Bettman/Getty Images In 1969, the $100,000 salary was worth around $910,000 in today's money, whereas the $200,000 salary was worth around $1.8 million.Lyndon B. Johnson was president at the time, but the raise didn't go into effect until Richard Nixon took office.Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and Bill Clinton earned $200,000 a year. Three decades later, in 2001, George W. Bush became the first president to be paid $400,000 annually. It hasn't been raised since. Laura Bush, President George W. Bush, President Donald Trump, and Melania Trump. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images In 1999, Congress voted to raise the salary to $400,000 starting in 2001. That amount would be worth around $762,000 today.There hasn't been a raise since then: Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and Joe Biden have all made $400,000.Before he took office in 2017, Trump said he would not take home the presidential salary, and during his first term, he donated the payments to federal agencies, including the National Park Service and the Department of Transportation.Trump said he would forgo his salary during his second term. The White House has not publicly said where the payments have gone.Other presidents have taken a similar approach — Hoover and Kennedy donated their salaries to charities. Since 1949, the president has also received a $50,000 expense account. President Donald Trump received a DoorDash delivery of McDonald's. Win McNamee/Getty Images In 1949, Congress passed an act that raised compensation to $100,000 and established a $50,000 expense account.The $50,000 covers expenses related to the president's official duties, such as dry-cleaning and hosting social gatherings. Unused funds revert to the US Treasury. They've also had a $100,000 travel budget and a $19,000 allowance for entertainment expenses. Joe Biden rode his bicycle along the beach while on vacation in South Carolina. NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images The $100,000 travel budget has been in effect since 1978 — before that, it was $40,000. When you leave office, that doesn't mean the paychecks stop coming. Barack Obama onstage during the dedication ceremony for the opening of the Barack Obama Presidential Center. Win McNamee/Getty Images Since 1958, presidents have received a pension equal to the "salary of a Cabinet-level secretary." For example, Obama's presidential pension is $253,100 annually. Read next Gabbi Shaw is a reporter on Business Insider's editorial partnerships team. She covers entertainment, travel, food, and lifestyle for Business Insider, and Insider Inc.'s partners, including MSN, Apple News, and Yahoo.She graduated from Tulane University in 2017 with a degree in public health and now lives in New York City. She can be reached on X or LinkedIn.Please send all inquiries, comments, or tips to gshaw@businessinsider.com.Selected stories:I traveled from New York City to Disney World and back in 24 hours. It was exhausting, but I saved hundreds of dollars.I tried $5 value meals from McDonald's, Burger King, and Wendy's. They're the perfect way for chains to lure customers.Hannah Brown says her post-'Bachelor' hookup with Peter Weber 'wasn't good' and ended with him leaving her with his parents and a $100 billA billionaire heir built one of America's largest homes. His bitter divorce means his $195 million mansion is for sale.Every movie and TV show in Marvel's Phase 5, rankedI shopped for holiday decor at Five Below and Dollar Tree. Both impressed me, but only one is catering to Gen Z.Apple TV+ is the most underrated streaming service. Here are the 24 best shows to watch.See inside Oheka Castle, the 127-room Long Island estate that inspired 'The Great Gatsby'I went to Arby's for the first time. I paid $38 for a delicious, meat-filled feast that easily could've fed 3 people.After a summer of turmoil, 'The Bachelorette' finally let reality in, and it points to a promising future for the show History Economy