List of Presidents of the United States (1789-2026)

Last Updated on May 23, 2026 by Bharat

The list of presidents of the United States covers more than 230 years of democratic leadership. Since 1789, a total of 47 individuals have held the office. The president serves as head of state and head of government. This article provides a complete record of every US president, their term dates, political party, and key facts.

The United States has had 47 presidents since George Washington was inaugurated on April 30, 1789. The US Presidents serve four-year terms. The 22nd Amendment, ratified in 1951, limits any president to only two elected terms.

Who is the Current President of the United States? 

Donald Trump is the current and the 47th president of the United States, having taken office on January 20, 2025. Trump is the second person after Grover Cleveland to serve two non-consecutive terms. Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th President of the United States

Presidents of United States: Key Facts at a Glance

Fact	Detail
Total presidents(as of 2026)	47
Distinct individuals who served as presidents	45
First president	George Washington (1789–1797)
Current president	Donald Trump (47th, since January 20, 2025)
Longest-serving president	Franklin D. Roosevelt (~12 years, 1933–1945)
Presidents assassinated in office	4: Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, Kennedy
Only president to resign	Richard Nixon (August 9, 1974)
Non-consecutive term presidents	Grover Cleveland (22nd and 24th) and Donald Trump (45th and 47th)
Two-term limit established by	22nd Amendment, ratified February 27, 1951

How the US Presidential System Works

The US president is elected every four years through the Electoral College. Each of the 50 states has a set number of electoral votes. A candidate needs at least 270 of the 538 total votes to win. The popular vote does not directly determine the outcome.

Presidents are sworn in (inaugurated) on January 20 following the November election. This date was set by the 20th Amendment, ratified in 1933. Before that, inauguration day was March 4. The term “lame duck” refers to the outgoing president during the gap between election day and inauguration day.

List of Presidents of the United States: Complete Tenure and Party

The table below lists all 47 presidents in order. It includes term start and end dates, political party, and key notes.

Sl.No	President	Term Start	Term End	Party	Notes
1	George Washington	Apr 30, 1789	Mar 4, 1797	Independent	No formal party; set the two-term precedent
2	John Adams	Mar 4, 1797	Mar 4, 1801	Federalist
3	Thomas Jefferson	Mar 4, 1801	Mar 4, 1809	Democratic-Republican	Principal author of the Declaration of Independence
4	James Madison	Mar 4, 1809	Mar 4, 1817	Democratic-Republican	Led the US during the War of 1812
5	James Monroe	Mar 4, 1817	Mar 4, 1825	Democratic-Republican	Announced the Monroe Doctrine (1823)
6	John Quincy Adams	Mar 4, 1825	Mar 4, 1829	Democratic-Republican / National Republican	Son of President John Adams
7	Andrew Jackson	Mar 4, 1829	Mar 4, 1837	Democrat	Founded the modern Democratic Party
8	Martin Van Buren	Mar 4, 1837	Mar 4, 1841	Democrat	First president born as a US citizen
9	William Henry Harrison	Mar 4, 1841	Apr 4, 1841	Whig	Died in office after 31 days; shortest presidency
10	John Tyler	Apr 4, 1841	Mar 4, 1845	Whig (later unaffiliated)	Succeeded Harrison; first VP to assume presidency
11	James K. Polk	Mar 4, 1845	Mar 4, 1849	Democrat	Oversaw major westward territorial expansion
12	Zachary Taylor	Mar 4, 1849	Jul 9, 1850	Whig	Died in office; served 16 months
13	Millard Fillmore	Jul 9, 1850	Mar 4, 1853	Whig	Succeeded Taylor
14	Franklin Pierce	Mar 4, 1853	Mar 4, 1857	Democrat
15	James Buchanan	Mar 4, 1857	Mar 4, 1861	Democrat	Only president never to marry
16	Abraham Lincoln	Mar 4, 1861	Apr 15, 1865	Republican	Assassinated; led the Union in the Civil War
17	Andrew Johnson	Apr 15, 1865	Mar 4, 1869	National Union / Democrat	Succeeded Lincoln; first president to be impeached
18	Ulysses S. Grant	Mar 4, 1869	Mar 4, 1877	Republican	Union general in the Civil War
19	Rutherford B. Hayes	Mar 4, 1877	Mar 4, 1881	Republican
20	James A. Garfield	Mar 4, 1881	Sep 19, 1881	Republican	Assassinated; served about 6 months
21	Chester A. Arthur	Sep 19, 1881	Mar 4, 1885	Republican	Succeeded Garfield
22	Grover Cleveland	Mar 4, 1885	Mar 4, 1889	Democrat	First term
23	Benjamin Harrison	Mar 4, 1889	Mar 4, 1893	Republican	Grandson of President William Henry Harrison
24	Grover Cleveland	Mar 4, 1893	Mar 4, 1897	Democrat	Second term; only non-consecutive presidency until Trump
25	William McKinley	Mar 4, 1897	Sep 14, 1901	Republican	Assassinated; led the US in the Spanish-American War
26	Theodore Roosevelt	Sep 14, 1901	Mar 4, 1909	Republican	Succeeded McKinley; youngest person to become president (age 42)
27	William Howard Taft	Mar 4, 1909	Mar 4, 1913	Republican	Later served as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
28	Woodrow Wilson	Mar 4, 1913	Mar 4, 1921	Democrat	Led the US in World War I; proposed the League of Nations
29	Warren G. Harding	Mar 4, 1921	Aug 2, 1923	Republican	Died in office
30	Calvin Coolidge	Aug 2, 1923	Mar 4, 1929	Republican	Succeeded Harding
31	Herbert Hoover	Mar 4, 1929	Mar 4, 1933	Republican	Presidency marked by the Great Depression
32	Franklin D. Roosevelt	Mar 4, 1933	Apr 12, 1945	Democrat	Died in office; longest-serving president.
33	Harry S. Truman	Apr 12, 1945	Jan 20, 1953	Democrat	Succeeded FDR; ordered the atomic bombs on Japan (1945)
34	Dwight D. Eisenhower	Jan 20, 1953	Jan 20, 1961	Republican	Supreme Allied Commander in World War II
35	John F. Kennedy	Jan 20, 1961	Nov 22, 1963	Democrat	Assassinated in Dallas; youngest elected president (age 43)
36	Lyndon B. Johnson	Nov 22, 1963	Jan 20, 1969	Democrat	Succeeded Kennedy; signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964
37	Richard Nixon	Jan 20, 1969	Aug 9, 1974	Republican	Only president to resign; Watergate scandal
38	Gerald Ford	Aug 9, 1974	Jan 20, 1977	Republican	Succeeded Nixon; only president never elected as president or VP
39	Jimmy Carter	Jan 20, 1977	Jan 20, 1981	Democrat	Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002
40	Ronald Reagan	Jan 20, 1981	Jan 20, 1989	Republican	Oldest person elected president at the time (age 69)
41	George H.W. Bush	Jan 20, 1989	Jan 20, 1993	Republican	Led the US in the Gulf War (1991)
42	Bill Clinton	Jan 20, 1993	Jan 20, 2001	Democrat	Second president to be impeached (1998)
43	George W. Bush	Jan 20, 2001	Jan 20, 2009	Republican	Led the US response to the September 11 attacks
44	Barack Obama	Jan 20, 2009	Jan 20, 2017	Democrat	First African American to serve as president
45	Donald Trump	Jan 20, 2017	Jan 20, 2021	Republican	First term; third president to be impeached (2019 and 2021)
46	Joe Biden	Jan 20, 2021	Jan 20, 2025	Democrat	Oldest person to serve as president (inaugurated age 78)
47	Donald Trump	Jan 20, 2025	Present	Republican	Second term; second president to serve non-consecutive terms

ALSO READ: Who Was the First President of the United States?

Political Parties and the Presidency

The US presidency has been dominated by two parties since the 1860s: the Democratic Party and the Republican Party. This is known as the two-party system.

Before that, the Federalist Party, the Democratic-Republican Party, and the Whig Party also produced presidents. George Washington held no party affiliation. No third-party candidate has ever won the presidency.

Of the 47 presidencies, Republicans have held the office for a total of about 89 years and Democrats for about 92 years, as of 2026.

Interesting Facts about the Presidents of the United States

1. Franklin D. Roosevelt holds the record for the longest time in office. He served from 1933 until his death in 1945, a period of approximately 12 years. FDR is the longest-serving US president. He was elected four times. His extended service led directly to the 22nd Amendment (1951), which set the two-term limit.

2. William Henry Harrison served the shortest term. He died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841. 

3. Barack Obama became the first African American president when he took office in 2009.

4. Theodore Roosevelt became the youngest person to hold the presidency at age 42, after the death of McKinley in 1901. 

5. While Roosevelt was the youngest person to serve; Kennedy was the youngest person to be elected, at age 43.

Who was the first president of the United States? 

George Washington was the first president of the United States. He was inaugurated on April 30, 1789, in New York City, which was the nation’s capital at the time. Washington served two terms, from 1789 to 1797. 

Which US president served the longest term? 

Franklin D. Roosevelt served the longest term of any US president. He held office from March 4, 1933, until his death on April 12, 1945, a period of approximately 12 years. He was elected four times. His extended service prompted the 22nd Amendment, ratified in 1951, which limits any person to two elected terms as president.

Which US presidents were assassinated while in office? 

Four US presidents were assassinated while serving in office. Abraham Lincoln was shot on April 14, 1865. James A. Garfield was shot on July 2, 1881. William McKinley was shot on September 6, 1901. John F. Kennedy was shot on November 22, 1963. In all four cases, the sitting vice president assumed the presidency immediately after the president’s death.

Who is the only US president to resign from office?

Richard Nixon became the only US president in the history to resign from the office. He stepped down on August 9, 1974 to avoid impeachment due to his involvement in the Watergate scandal.

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