Keep Factually independent
Whether you agree or disagree with our analysis, these conversations matter for democracy. We don't take money from political groups - even a $5 donation helps us keep it that way.
What was the amount of Donald Trump's presidential salary per year?
Executive summary
Donald Trump’s official U.S. presidential base salary is $400,000 per year, a figure set by federal law and unchanged since 2001 [1]. Multiple outlets note he has publicly said he will take a symbolic $1 salary and has donated his $400,000 annual pay during prior terms, while also receiving the statutory expense, travel and entertainment allowances attached to the office [2] [3] [4].
1. The statutory number: $400,000 a year — what the law says
Congress fixed the president’s pay at $400,000 annually in Title 3 of the U.S. Code, and major news outlets report that the presidential salary has remained at that level since a 2001 increase [1]. Outlets including Fortune and CBS repeat that $400,000 is the official annual base pay a sitting president receives [5] [1].
2. The “$1 salary” pledge and how presidents can refuse pay
Donald Trump announced during his 2016 transition that he would “take $1 a year” rather than the full $400,000, a pledge covered by the BBC and other outlets noting prior presidents have made similar symbolic gestures [2]. Reporting and fact-checking explain presidents cannot legally decline compensation outright but can donate the pay to charity or federal agencies after receiving it, which is the mechanism used for a symbolic $1 claim to have practical effect [2] [3].
3. Donations and historical practice: what Trump has done with the pay
Reports and archived White House statements indicate Trump donated quarterly portions of his presidential pay to federal agencies during his earlier term — for example, to the Department of Education, the National Park Service and other recipients — and media investigations say he publicly credited donating his $400,000 annual salary [6] [7]. Investigative groups like Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) note that while he publicly took credit for donating the taxpayer-funded salary, such donations were tiny compared with his outside business income [8] [9].
4. Beyond base pay: allowances and other statutory sums attached to the office
In addition to the $400,000 base salary, law provides an expense allowance and other appropriated funds for the president’s official duties. Reporting lists a $50,000 expense allowance, $100,000 travel allowance and about $19,000 for entertainment as customary statutory or budgeted items that accompany the office [4]. These are separate from the base salary and are intended to defray official costs.
5. Context: presidential pay vs. outside income and net worth
Multiple outlets and watchdogs stress that the $400,000 salary is small relative to Donald Trump’s reported business income and paper wealth; Fortune and Wikipedia summaries cite multi‑billion‑dollar valuations and reporting that Trump’s outside revenue and assets produced far larger sums during his presidencies [5] [9]. CREW’s review found over $1.6 billion in outside revenue reported while he served, underlining why the statutory salary is a minor slice of his overall finances [8].
6. How the reporting differs and where questions remain
Mainstream outlets consistently list $400,000 as the legal presidential salary [1] [5]. Some pieces focus on the symbolic $1 pledge and charitable donations [2] [7], while watchdog and investigative reporting emphasizes the contrast between donated salary and large private income streams [8] [9]. Available sources do not mention precisely how much of each quarterly payment came from payroll versus personal checks in every instance, and some claims about full donation totals rely on aggregation and interpretation by reporters [7] [8].
7. What this means for a reader assessing claims about Trump’s pay
If you see a headline citing “presidential salary,” the accurate statutory figure is $400,000 per year; if you see claims Trump “didn’t take a salary,” those refer to his public pledge to accept $1 and to donate his pay after receipt [1] [2]. Watchdog reporting cautions that donating the $400,000 salary does not alter the much larger financial picture created by private business revenues and equity holdings [8] [9].
Sources cited: CBS News on statutory salary and history [1]; BBC on the $1 pledge [2]; Palm Beach Post and other outlets on donation practice and math [3]; Fortune on salary and net worth context [5]; CREW and Wikipedia summaries on outside income and donation context [8] [9]; Fox News on allowances beyond base pay [4]; White House archive release regarding specific donations [6]; Forbes aggregation on donations [7].