With prestigious chefs at their fingertips and a White House kitchen to rival that of Michelin-star restaurants, it might surprise you to learn that the first family actually has to pay for their own food. Yes, the president receives a salary like the rest of us – and they ultimately use that money to buy groceries and feed their whole family. In fact, the only food that comes out of the White House’s pocket is the food for state dinners.

If you’ve ever been to Washington, D.C., you’ll know that the summers can get pretty warm. But while most people will simply open a window when the temperatures start to rise, you won’t find any of the first family opening a window. After all, they’re not allowed. This was confirmed by Michelle Obama during an interview with Oprah Winfrey when she revealed that her daughter Sasha opened a window without thinking shortly after moving in.

After a long day of running the country, we bet the president and the First Lady love to sit down with a glass of wine in their hands. But you won’t find any South African, French, or Italian wine in the White House. Yes, the first family has to stick to the rule that only domestic wine is allowed at the White House – which means that they have to settle for wines from the likes of California and Virginia.

There’s the President of the United States, and then there’s the first family. And while both are allowed to call the White House home, rules state that there should be a distinction between the two of them – especially when it comes to the day-to-day running of the country. According to the rules, members of the first family aren’t allowed any formal roles within the administration. Not every president has abided by these rules, though.

Anyone who has ever moved house will know that it’s not cheap. Just the transportation of furniture from one home to another can cost a small fortune – and that’s something the first family can understand, too. Although you might assume that the administration would cover their moving costs – or at least help them move their belongings into the house – they wipe their hands of such a task.

Security is a big topic in the White House, and the safety of the president and the first family is a matter of national security. Because of this, they have whole teams of people who spend their days keeping them safe – and this applies to the roads, too. That’s one of the reasons why presidents and their families aren’t allowed to drive on public roads. Yes, even the kids.

If you’re still not over the fact that the president and his family have to pay for their own groceries and food at the White House, we’re here to tell you that the same rules apply at Camp David, too. If the president and his family choose to visit Camp David of their own accord – say, for a little break or vacation – they are once again expected to pay for their own food.

Many of the rules and regulations in the White House focus on the people living inside of it. However, there are also many rules regarding the White House as a whole. After all, the first family doesn’t own it – which means that the federal government is in charge of almost every aspect of the house. And one of the biggest rules they have is that George Washington’s portrait must never be removed.

Being the son or daughter of the president of the United States comes with certain privileges. And while living in the White House is one of them, being sent to private school is another. This is primarily for their safety but also to give the kids the chance to grow up around others who are in the public eye – so they don’t seem so out of place. This hasn’t always been the case, though.

We imagine that winning an election, becoming president of the United States, and then moving your whole family into the White House can be pretty daunting. But the president doesn’t have time to chill out or explore the neighborhood after moving. Just one week into their presidency, they’re tasked with planning their own funeral. After all, their death would set in motion a chain of events that could change the country for good.

As we already know that the first family can’t open windows in the White House, it probably won’t surprise you to learn that they’re not allowed to open the windows in the car, either. Instead, they have to rely on the car’s air-con to keep them cool so they don’t make themselves vulnerable to attack. As every White House car is equipped with bulletproof glass, just a small crack can make a big difference.

While we already know that the first family is allowed to redecorate the White House when they move in, what you might not realize is that they don’t necessarily have to dip into their own pockets – or wallets – to do this. When a new president and their first family move into the White House, they are actually given a decorating allowance to make these changes, and this money is given to them by Congress.

Living in such a big house must be lonely, which is why so many first families choose to add a family pet to the White House. And while a few cats have called the White House home over the years, dogs have been the most popular choice. Of course, anyone who has ever had a dog will know that they require a certain amount of care and attention – especially when they need to use the bathroom.

It probably won’t surprise you to learn that first children don’t have the same kind of freedom as other kids their age. Every move has to be signed off by the Secret Service, and they can’t just head to Dunkin’ Donuts after school with their friends. But while you might have already assumed that they have to have Secret Service detail at all times, you might not have realized that this continues after their parents’ time in office has come to an end.

When you live in the White House, your actions reflect the whole country. And as it would be impossible to control every post, like, or comment that members of the first family make, the rules state that they’re just not allowed social media accounts at all. This rule includes all kinds of social media, from Facebook to Instagram and even TikTok. After all, their press teams would have a field day if they had them.

One of the perks of living in the White House is that there are housekeeping staff to keep the whole place running smoothly. In addition to cleaning official government areas, these staff members are also tasked with cleaning the first family’s living quarters. And while this could include the making of beds, it seems as though some former first children have had to make their own beds in the past.

While there’s no doubt about the fact that the president of the United States has a big job on his hands, many of their daily tasks are also dictated by tradition and the upkeep of appearances. Because of this, the past and current presidents always have to meet after the election as a way to symbolise the passing of the torch and the presidency from one president to another president.

Anyone who has watched any television show or movie that focuses on the security of world leaders will know that code names are a must. These names are used by their security detail so that they can talk about the world leader in public without giving away any sensitive information. Of course, this is also the case for the President of the United States, the First Lady, and the First Family. It’s not known how the Secret Service come up with these code names, though.

Although members of the first family aren’t allowed any personal social media accounts, some choose to have ‘official’ accounts which are controlled by the administration. This gives them a chance to build up a following, promote their parents, and bring light to causes that they hold dear. They normally have these accounts for the entirety of their stint in the White House, and they can become extremely popular with fans across the globe.

When you move to a new house, you want to put your stamp on it. You want to decorate it in a way that suits your style and your aesthetic, and you want it to feel like a home. Thankfully, the first family are allowed to do just that when they move into the White House. They have the chance to use an interior designer or their own ideas to redecorate their living quarters – but that doesn’t mean that they can redecorate everywhere.

Festive holidays are a big deal in the White House, and the president and their family are expected to uphold certain traditions during this time. And when Christmas comes around, the first family is in charge of decorating the famous White House Christmas tree. They can’t just go rogue and decorate it based on their own tastes, though. Instead, they must choose and stick to a single theme that would overtake the tree.

The First Lady of the United States has always been well-dressed. But since Jackie Kennedy paved the way for first lady fashion, these women are expected to look their best at all times. In fact, they’re often torn down by the media for wearing the same outfit twice. As a result, you might expect the first ladies to receive an allowance for their clothes – but that’s not the case. First ladies are expected to fill their own closets with their own money.

There are a lot of traditions when it comes to the presidency. One that has yet to be broken is the tradition that presidents-elect and their families will always stay in Blair House the night before the inauguration. This tradition has been upheld for decades and is seen as a ritual they have to complete before they get to officially move into the White House. We bet they’re not too mad about it, though.

If you had to choose between making your own meals for the rest of your life or having a professional chef do it, we’re going to assume that you’d opt for the latter. And having a personal chef is one of the major perks of living in the White House. But in the past, first family members have craved normal food – and food that they’ve made themselves. So, they now have access to an unmanned kitchen, too.

When you think of the first lady, you probably think of the wife of the president. And while this is the case the majority of the time, it’s important to note that this isn’t always the way things work. The first lady doesn’t have to be married to the president, and she doesn’t even have to be the president’s romantic partner. In fact, the President of the United States can choose anyone to be their first lady if they are a widower or they don’t have a partner at all.

One thing we know for sure is that first children don’t live normal lives. Sure, their parents try to make their lives as normal as possible, but the reality is that they’re always going to be different to their peers. And while this can be a major downside of life in the White House, there are also some perks that they get to take advantage of if they really want to.

When you move out of your house, there’s a high chance that you will spend a huge amount of time cleaning it up for the next owners. Doing so is a courtesy that allows the new owners to move in without any fuss. But this same train of thought doesn’t matter when you’re the President of the United States, as the first family can move out of the White House without cleaning it up.

In the White House, there are things the first family pays for, and then there are things the government – and, ultimately, the taxpayers – pay for. And while taxpayers pay for official dinners, the same can’t be said for the first family’s personal dinners and essentials. In fact, they receive a bill at the end of each month that outlines everything they owe the White House for that month.

Although the president of the United States can still run the country without a spouse by their side, it’s fair to say that first ladies become almost as famous as their husbands. They become a symbol of the United States, and they become an extension of the president. Because of this, the rules state that first ladies always have to meet each other for the first time after the election.

When you live in a place like the White House, you’d assume that there are a lot of rules about where you can and can’t go. And while the Secret Service often monitors the first family’s movements, it seems as though the first children have found a loophole over the years. As if sneaking away from their security detail wasn’t bad enough, these kids also sneak onto the roof of the White House.

Even though the president and first family call the White House their home during the president’s term in office, it’s first and foremost a very fancy office. It’s home to countless government workers, and big decisions are made there every day. Because of this, it’s generally treated as more of an office than a home – and there aren’t even any private entrances and exits for the first family to use.

Sure, living in the White House and having to run a whole country is probably pretty stressful at times, but they still get to experience some perks that only first families get to enjoy. In fact, Hollywood hotshots regularly send movies to the president and their family before they’ve even been released in theaters for them to watch before the rest of the country. And it’s said that they take full advantage of this.

Moving into the White House must be pretty daunting – especially if you have kids. By taking children away from their family home and to a place like the White House, you just don’t know what’s going to happen. You also don’t know whether your children will enjoy living somewhere with so many rules and regulations. But it seems as though first children have made fun for themselves over the years.

When you’re president of the United States – or related to the president of the United States – you get a lot of things for free. You also have to buy a lot of things to keep up appearances. And while some first families take all of that extra stuff with them to their next house post-presidency, others want to leave some behind. Thankfully, there is a place for that.

Being a child and growing up in the White House must feel pretty odd. While we’re sure the White House is an amazing place, it probably doesn’t feel like home – which is why we like this next rule. After all, first children are allowed to decorate their own personal rooms as they see fit, which gives them the freedom to create a safe haven that suits them and their style perfectly.