Which U.S. presidents refused their presidential salary and in what years?

1. Who said “I won’t take a salary” — and what the records actually show

The contemporary claim set consistently names Washington, Hoover, Kennedy, and Trump as presidents who did not personally keep the presidential salary. The historical nuance is important: George Washington offered to serve without pay in 1789 but Congress required compensation and he accepted the statutory $25,000, so his “refusal” is an initial offer, not an executed zero-pay tenure ^{[1] [2]}. Herbert Hoover and John F. Kennedy are reported to have donated their full presidential salaries during their terms, with sources noting Hoover’s wealth and Kennedy’s family means as the context for their donations ^{[1] [5]}. Donald Trump made a public pledge on the campaign trail to forgo the $400,000 annual salary and multiple accounts report quarterly donations of his pay to government agencies across his term ^{[4] [1]}. Each president’s situation differs: Washington’s was a constitutional and parliamentary negotiation, while Hoover, Kennedy, and Trump redirected salary payments after taking office.

2. Disagreement in secondary accounts — who’s included and who’s omitted

The datasets show discrepancies among secondary sources about which presidents “refused” salary. One analysis lists only Hoover and Kennedy as presidents who did not accept compensation ^[5], while others include Washington and Trump ^{[1] [6] [2]}. Part of this divergence arises from definitional differences: some writers count any initial offer to decline (Washington), others count only those who accepted the statutory salary and then donated it (Hoover, Kennedy), and others count modern pledges fulfilled by periodic donations (Trump) ^{[3] [2]}. The variations in coverage also reflect differing emphases: a constitutional-history lens highlights Washington’s unique early republic circumstance; an ethics or public-perception lens emphasizes public donations and the optics of refusing pay ^{[3] [6]}. These inconsistent inclusions explain why quick lists of presidents who “refused” pay vary across summaries.

3. Dollar figures, years in office, and how the donations were executed

The provided analyses give concrete monetary and temporal specifics that frame each claim. Washington’s episode occurred at the founding in 1789 when Congress set the salary at $25,000 (he initially offered to decline but later accepted) ^{[1] [2]}. Herbert Hoover, president 1929–1933, is described as having donated his presidential compensation during his single term; one account ties Hoover’s pay decades earlier to a pre-1929 figure of about $75,000 as context for his wealth ^{[1] [2]}. John F. Kennedy, president 1961–1963, donated his $100,000 salary to charity throughout his presidency per the provided analyses ^{[5] [2]}. Donald Trump pledged to forgo the statutory $400,000 annual salary for 2017–2021 and is reported to have redistributed quarterly paychecks to specified federal agencies and programs ^{[4] [1]}. The mechanics differ: Washington’s was a legislative negotiation, the mid‑20th century presidents used charities, and the modern example used government transfers.

4. Constitutional and ethical context — you can’t legally “refuse” pay, but you can donate it

The analyses emphasize a constitutional point: the president’s salary is fixed by statute and cannot simply be zeroed out by personal refusal, so in practice presidents who say they “refuse” or “do not take” a salary have often accepted the statutory payment and then donated or transferred it ^[3]. This legal reality shapes how historians and journalists interpret declarations of refusal: Washington’s initial offer and later acceptance reflect constitutional and congressional prerogatives, while Hoover, Kennedy, and Trump effectively redirected compensation rather than nullified the statutory entitlement ^{[3] [2]}. Ethically, some analyses raise concerns that declining personal pay can introduce perception issues about conflicts of interest or influence, especially if a president’s wealth ties them to outside interests or if donations are routed in ways that raise accountability questions ^[6]. These legal and ethical frames explain why source language varies between “refused,” “donated,” and “redirected.”

5. Bottom line — agreed facts amid interpretive differences

Across the provided analyses, the core factual agreement is that Hoover and Kennedy donated their presidential pay during their terms, and Trump pledged and reportedly redirected his statutory salary during 2017–2021; Washington initially offered to decline pay in 1789 but ultimately accepted the congressional salary ^{[1] [2] [4]}. Differences among accounts stem from definitional choices and emphasis—whether an initial offer counts as a refusal, whether donations after acceptance count as “not taking” pay, and how journalists treat campaign pledges fulfilled via quarterly donations ^{[3] [5] [6]}. The provable timeline and dollar figures in the provided analyses support naming Washington (1789 offer), Hoover (1929–1933 donations), Kennedy (1961–1963 donations), and Trump (2017–2021 pledges and transfers) as the principal instances described in these sources ^{[1] [2] [5] [4]}.