Before-and-after photos show changes Trump has made to the White House decor, so far

Ornaments sit on a shelf as US President Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on April 7, 2025. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in Washington on Monday to meet Donald Trump, whom he will likely ask for a reprieve from US tariffs while seeking further backing on Iran and Gaza.

SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

Donald Trump has brought his love of maximalism and gold furnishings to the White House
He added gold embellishments to the walls and ceiling of the Oval Office and Cabinet Room.
He has also renovated the Rose Garden and announced plans to build a ballroom in the East Wing.

The Oval Office is looking a little bit different lately.

Every US president makes new interior design choices upon entering the White House, often reflecting their personal tastes or political views.

In his second nonconsecutive term, President Donald Trump has incorporated his love of maximalism and gold furnishings into the Oval Office.

More White House renovations are in the works. Construction of a $200 million, 90,000-square-foot state ballroom began in the East Wing in September.

Take a look inside Trump’s redecorated White House to see the changes he’s made since former President Joe Biden left office.

The White House did not respond to a request for comment.

Biden’s dark-blue Oval Office rug was originally designed for Bill Clinton.

Joe Biden's blue Oval Office rug. — President Joe Biden participates in an expanded bilateral meeting on Monday, July 19, 2021, with King Abdullah II and Crown Prince Al Hussein Bin Abdullah II of Jordan, in the Oval Office of the White House.

Official White House Photo by Adam Schultz

The rug, which featured the presidential seal in the center, was designed by Kaki Hockersmith, an interior designer based in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Upon returning to the White House, Trump replaced it with a lighter rug used by Ronald Reagan.

Donald Trump's Reagan rug in the Oval Office. — President Donald J. Trump participates in a signing ceremony with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić and Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti Friday, Sept. 4, 2020, in the Oval Office of the White House.

Official White House Photo by Joyce N. Boghosian

The rug’s design includes the presidential seal, a sunbeam pattern, and olive branches along the border as a symbol of peace.

Trump also used the rug during his first term.

Biden only had two flags in the Oval Office.

Joe Biden in the Oval Office. — WASHINGTON, DC – JANUARY 10: U.S. President Joe Biden pauses during a briefing on the wildfires across Los Angeles in the Oval Office of the White House on January 10, 2025 in Washington, DC. President Biden convened key officials for a briefing on the federal response to multiple devastating wildfires burning across Los Angeles County which have reportedly killed at least 10 people and spread to more than 36,000 acres.

Alex Wong/Getty Images

Biden displayed an American flag and a flag with the presidential seal.

Trump added the flags of different branches of the US military.

Donald Trump in the Oval Office in 2025. — Incoming White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles watches as US President Donald Trump speaks to journalists in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on January 20, 2025.

JIM WATSON/POOL/AFP via Getty Images

Trump’s Oval Office features the flags of the Army, the Marine Corps, and the Navy.

During Biden’s presidency, the Oval Office’s ceiling didn’t feature any additional embellishments.

The crown molding on the ceiling matched the cream wallpaper.

Trump added gold trim to the crown molding on the ceiling.

Gold trim in the Oval Office. — WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES – APRIL 7: (—-EDITORIAL USE ONLY MANDATORY CREDIT – ‘AVI OHAYON / GPO / HANDOUT’ – NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS – DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS—-) United States President Donald Trump (L) meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (R) in the White House in Washington DC., United States on April 7, 2025. Trump answered press members’ questions on the agenda during his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office.

Avi Ohayon /Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images

The gold embellishments matched the gold curtains, which remained in place from Biden’s presidency.

Biden’s Oval Office featured a prominent portrait of President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Donald Trump and Joe Biden in the Oval Office. — WASHINGTON, DC – NOVEMBER 13: U.S. President Joe Biden meets with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump in the Oval Office of the White House on November 13, 2024 in Washington, DC. President Biden continued the tradition inviting the newly-elected president to meet at the White House after Trump won the presidential election on November 5.

Alex Wong/Getty Images

Biden also hung portraits of Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton together to symbolize the benefits of different opinions, as well as portraits of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln.

Trump added additional portraits and numerous gold embellishments to the space.

Donald Trump in the Oval Office. — WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 09: U.S. President Donald Trump and Finland President Alexander Stubb meet in the Oval Office at the the White House White House on October 09, 2025 in Washington, DC. Stubb and Trump met to discuss bilateral trade, defense policy and the war in Ukraine. Also in attendance were Vice President JD Vance and Finland Prime Minister Petteri Orpo.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Trump added more portraits with decorative frames to create an Oval Office gallery wall. He also replaced Biden’s portrait of FDR with one of George Washington and displayed historic gold urns and baskets from the White House collection on the mantle.

Trump also incorporated smaller gold details, such as coasters, branded with his name.

A gold "Trump" coaster. — TOPSHOT – A gold coaster reading “TRUMP” sits on the table in front of US President Donald Trump as he meets with Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on March 12, 2025.

MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

Trump’s love of gold decor is well-known. His Trump Tower penthouse in New York City features numerous gilded ceilings, furniture pieces, and artwork. Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, also includes a ballroom covered in gold from floor to ceiling.

Before Trump took office for the second time, the presidential seal on the ceiling of the Oval Office was a subtle adornment.

The Oval Office ceiling. — The Oval Office of the White House February 29, 2008 in Washington, DC.

PAUL J. RICHARDS/AFP via Getty Images

President Franklin D. Roosevelt added the plaster relief of the presidential seal to the Oval Office during a 1934 White House renovation.

Trump added gilded gold detailing to the design, making it more visible.

The seal of the president on teh ceiling of the Oval Office gilded with gold. — A view of the seal of the president of the United States on the ceiling of the Oval Office as US President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference with Elon Musk in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 30, 2025. Musk, who stormed into US politics as President Trump’s chainsaw-brandishing sidekick, announced on May 28 that he is leaving his role in US government, intended to reduce federal spending, shortly after his first major break with the President over Trump’s signature spending bill.

ALLISON ROBBERT/AFP via Getty Images

Both the seal and the stars surrounding it were covered in gold paint.

Biden chose to display President Barack Obama’s official White House portrait in the Entrance Hall.

The Bidens stand next to a portrait of Barack Obama at the White House. — A portrait of former US President Barack Obama is seen as US President Joe Biden and US first lady Jill Biden look at candles during an event in the at the Grand Staircase of the White House to mark the one year anniversary of the Uvalde school mass shooting May 24, 2023, in Washington, DC. A teenage gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, on May 24, 2022.

BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images

The hyperrealistic portrait, painted by Robert McCurdy, was unveiled at the White House in 2023.

Trump replaced Obama’s portrait with a painting of himself.

A painting of Donald Trump surviving an assassination attempt hanging in the White House. — WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 15: A painting depicting the Associated Press photograph of the aftermath of the assassination attempt on then U.S. Presidential candidate Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania hangs in the Entrance Hall of the White House on April 15, 2025 in Washington, DC. The painting has recently replaced the White House portrait of former U.S. President Barack Obama.

Win McNamee/Getty Images

Artist Marc Lipp painted a rendering of an Associated Press photo that captured Trump raising his fist in the air following an assassination attempt at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

The White House Rose Garden previously featured a grass lawn.

Joe Biden in the White House Rose Garden. — US President Joe Biden addresses the nation from the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, DC, November 7, 2024, after Donald Trump won the presidential election. Biden urged Americans Thursday to lower the political temperature after Donald Trump’s sweeping election win, saying he would ensure a “peaceful and orderly” transition to the Republican.

SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images

Before it was used for press conferences and events, first lady Ellen Wilson originally designed the outdoor space as a formal flower garden in 1913.

First lady Melania Trump added a limestone border around the lawn in 2020.

Trump decided to pave over the grass in the Rose Garden, turning it into an outdoor terrace rebranded as “The Rose Garden Club.”

Donald Trump's new White House Rose Garden. — View of the newly-paved Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, DC, on August 9, 2025. US President Donald Trump converted the grass portion of the Rose Garden into a patio space, inspired by his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS / AFP

Trump told Fox News that the grass in the Rose Garden was impractical for large events because it stayed wet when it rained and was too soft for attendees who wore high heels.

“The grass just doesn’t work,” Trump told Fox News host Laura Ingraham in March.

Workers began transforming the lawn into a patio in June, replacing the grass with concrete and stone tiles. “The Rose Garden Club” was completed in August.

Biden and previous presidents occasionally held large events, such as state dinners, in decorative tents on the White House lawn.

Joe Biden hosts a state dinner in a tent on the grounds of the White House. — WASHINGTON, D.C., OCTOBER 25: Invited guests wait for President Joseph Biden and Australian PM Anthony Albanese inside a colorfully decorated tent for the state dinner at the White House in Washington, D.C., October 25, 2023.

Astrid Riecken For The Washington Post via Getty Images

The East Room, the largest state room in the White House, has a seating capacity of 200 people. When Biden hosted Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in 2023, he held the state dinner in a tent outside the White House to accommodate the larger crowd of over 300.

In July, Trump announced plans to build a state ballroom with a capacity of 650 in the East Wing.

Karoline Leavitt holds a rendering of a state ballroom addition to the White House. — WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 31: White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a press briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on July 31, 2025 in Washington, DC. Leavitt holds a rendering of a ballroom building that U.S. President Donald Trump wants to build on the White House grounds as she spoke to reporters about the day’s news topics.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

The 90,000-square-foot ballroom, which the White House called a “much-needed and exquisite addition,” will cost approximately $200 million to construct. Trump and other “patriot donors” will foot the bill for the project, the White House said.

During the Biden administration, the Cabinet Room featured minimal artwork and decor.

Joe Biden in the Cabinet Room. — US President Joe Biden speaks during a cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on June 6, 2023.

ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images

Located in the West Wing near the Oval Office, the Cabinet Room overlooks the Rose Garden and features a large, oval-shaped mahogany table purchased by President Richard Nixon in 1970, according to Obama’s archived White House website.

Seating at the table is assigned in order of when each department was established, with the oldest departments sitting nearest to the president.

Trump added additional paintings to the walls and gold furnishings along the ceiling.

The Cabinet Room with new gold furnishings added by Donald Trump. — WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 09: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on October 09, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump spoke on the Israel and Hamas ceasefire and hostage deal saying the hostages may be released next week.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Trump chose portraits of past presidents, including George Washington, John Adams, Andrew Jackson, James Polk, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Dwight Eisenhower, to decorate the Cabinet Room.

“The vaults are where we have a lot of great pictures and artwork,” Trump told reporters in July. “And I picked it all myself, I’m very proud of it.”

The Cabinet Room featured eagle-shaped wall sconces during Biden’s presidency.

The eagle sconces were installed as part of a 2004 refurbishment of the Cabinet Room that also included a new rug, curtains, and paint color.

Trump added 24-karat gold decals to the walls and installed matching gold curtains.

The Cabinet Room decorated with gold furnishings on the walls. — US President Donald Trump speaks during a cabinet meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on August 26, 2025. Also pictured, L/R, are Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, and Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy.

MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images

“Some of the highest quality 24 Karat Gold used in the Oval Office and Cabinet Room of the White House,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post in September. “Foreign Leaders, and everyone else, ‘freak out’ when they see the quality and beauty.”

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