Trump White House Payroll Shrinks 29% Year-Over-Year

The administration created new roles on criminal pardons, energy production, and more.

Donald Trump’s efforts to downsize the administrative state have had mixed results so far, but his own White House payroll suggests he is trying to lead by example.

The Trump administration spent just $44.1 million paying 404 employees in 2025, making it the least costly payroll since at least 2009 when adjusting for inflation.

However, 35 of Trump’s top staffers made at least $195,000. Only one staffer earned that much in the Biden White House in 2024, and nobody earned that much in the final year of Trump’s first term.

Trump’s White House spent a total of $198.6 million on payroll during the four years of his first term, or an average of $49.7 million per year. The smallest annual figure was the $46.4 million he spent in 2018. When he left office in 2020, his White House was spending $50.5 million on payroll.

The new dollar total is also a 29% reduction from the White House payroll in 2024, when Joe Biden spent $62.2 million. The White House employed 565 people that year, the most since Richard Nixon was president. In total, White House payroll cost taxpayers $230.1 million during the four years Biden was in office, or an average of $57.5 million per year.

President Obama never spent less than $51 million on the White House payroll during his eight years in office.

NOTE: All dollar figures above are adjusted for inflation to reflect May 2025 dollars.

Trump is still compensating his employees very well. The average staffer makes $109,117. Nearly 54% of the employees in the White House make at least $100,000, which is comparable to the 52% of employees that made six figures in Biden’s administration in 2024.

TOP STAFFERS

Presidential Advisor Jacalynne Klopp is currently outearning everyone in the White House with a $225,700 salary.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt makes $195,200. Her predecessor Karine Jean-Pierre made $180,000 in Biden’s administration, and Sarah Huckabee Sanders made $183,000 as Trump’s press secretary in 2019.

Chief of Staff Susan Wiles also makes $195,200. Biden’s chief of staff, Jeff Zients, made only $168,000 in 2024. Mark Meadows made $183,000 as Trump’s chief of staff in 2020.

That pay tier is populated with 33 team members, also including boldface names like border czar Tom Homan, homeland security advisor Stephen Miller, and communications director Stephen Cheung.

Trump also employs 27 lawyers making $3.8 million in total. That’s a dramatic reduction from the 45 lawyers that were making $6.3 million when Biden left office.

Eight staff members collect no pay, including those who play dual roles. For example, Secretary Rubio collects his salary from the State Department, but he doesn’t double dip to stand in as national security advisor.

STAFF STORIES

Alice Johnson makes $145,000 as Trump’s “pardon czar,” a new position that makes recommendations about which prisoners should be granted clemency. Trump pardoned 58 people between January and May of this year, including reality TV stars Todd and Julie Chrisley and rapper NBA YoungBoy.

Johnson herself was pardoned in 2018 after Kim Kardashian brought her case to Trump’s attention, which Johnson credited to “divine intervention.” She was serving a life sentence for her involvement in drug trafficking, including money laundering and intent to distribute cocaine.

Trump also added to the White House payroll by establishing the National Energy Dominance Council. Executive Director Jarrod Agen makes $155,000, and Deputy Executive Directors Blake Deeley and John Reiten make $195,200 and $152,000, respectively.

The council’s goal is to lower inflation and increase economic growth through energy abundance, but its payroll expense is still unclear. The public does not know exactly how many employees are working on the council, though Agen told Politico there is a “tiger team” of about 10 people.

The council’s original executive director, Oliver McPherson-Smith, has already left the administration. Roger Pielke Jr., a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, told E&E News that “It’s not clear exactly what [the council’s] functions are.”

Some staffers have names that might sound familiar:

Russell Huffines, who makes $83,500 as associate director of agency outreach, is the son of former Texas Republican state senator Don Huffines. The legislator and his brother run a real-estate company in Texas, and Don Huffines has used his position to push Governor Greg Abbott to take a more hardline stance on transgender and immigration policies. While his son works at the White House, Huffines is currently involved in a race for Texas Comptroller, where he says he will bring “President Trump’s DOGE to Texas.”

Alexandra Huizenga, who earns $65,500 as staff assistant is the daughter of U.S. Representative Bill Huizenga (R-MI). The elder Huizenga has served his district since 2011 and previously served in the Michigan House of Representatives before from 2003-2009. A recent report from NOTUS indicates Bill Huizenga is strongly considering a run for Michigan’s federal Senate seat—which the Trump administration and Republican operatives are strongly discouraging in favor of their preferred candidate, Mike Rogers.

OFFICE OF THE VP STILL A FOIA BLIND SPOT

The payroll report, as usual, contains no information about staffers in the Vice President’s Office. Open the Books has tried unsuccessfully in the past to obtain the salaries through open records requests, but the VP’s office claims to be exempt from the Freedom of Information Act. Limited payroll info is available in the semi-annual Report of the Secretary of the Senate.

We encourage the VP’s office to release this data and not force taxpayers to jump through hoops to find out how the VP’s office is spending their money. In an era of cost-cutting, it’s important to know whether the VP’s office is following President Trump’s lead. The VP’s office also employs relatives of notable public figures, including Buckley Carlson, son of the political commentator Tucker Carlson, which is a matter of taxpayer interest.

Download the White House payroll data here.

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