The flag of the president of the United States consists of the presidential coat of arms on a dark blue background.

The first record in regulations to prescribe a flag for the president was the 1858 Signals for the Use of the United States Navy, which specified that the union jack (the canton of the national flag by itself, i.e. blue with white stars for all the states) should be flown at the mainmast to signify the presence of the commander-in-chief.

The Naval Regulations of April 18, 1865, switched back to use the national flag, specifying it should be flown both from the mainmast while the president is aboard a ship, and also on the bow of boats on which he embarks.

The flag shall be hoisted at the main of vessels of war while the President is on board, and shall be carried in the bow of his boat.

The crest of the coat of arms was omitted however, and instead an arc of thirteen stars was used, above the eagle and on either side of the wings.

[13] It was used primarily aboard boats, such as on the presidential yacht USS Dolphin in 1893 for a naval fleet review during celebrations related to the 400th anniversary of Columbus.

[15] There were some exceptions though, such as during the centennial of Washington's inauguration in 1889,[16] and by a hotel proprietor during a presidential trip to New York City in 1897.

The color was more meant for ceremonial purposes, was smaller than the flag, made of silk, and had a gold and silver fringed border.

[2][21][22] The flag was scarlet, with a large blue star in the middle outlined in white which contained the Great Seal.

[2] This flag was placed in the cabinet room in the White House during the war, and was first shown in public during peace jubilee celebrations in Chicago and Philadelphia in October, 1898.

After discussions, and perhaps influenced by Secretary of State John Hay who noted that the Navy flag had come first and claimed that McKinley had never approved the Army version,[26] President Roosevelt decided that there should only be one official flag for the president and chose the Navy's version.

The crest above the eagle's head was also different; instead of a ring of clouds the constellation of stars was only surrounded by a circular set of rays.

[24][28] Several photos show this design was in fact used, such as at a Columbus Day celebration in 1912,[29] on the presidential yacht Mayflower during a naval review in New York Harbor on October 14, 1912,[30] and in a 1914 magazine article about the flag-making operation at the New York Navy Yard, where the flag is described as taking a full month to make (the longest of any of their flags).

[2][27][33][34] This left the Navy flag unchanged, but did force a change in the Army version, and so on February 20, 1913, an order was duly issued which switched the background of the Army presidential color to blue and the color of the star in the middle to scarlet.

There were thirteen clearly defined white cloud puffs in an arc, with the rays of the glory in gold.

Truman issued Executive Order 9646 on October 25, 1945, which unified the coat of arms, flag, and seal to use the new design.

[39] The current flag is defined in Executive Order 10860: The Color and Flag of the President of the United States shall consist of a dark blue rectangular background of sizes and proportions to conform to military and naval custom, on which shall appear the Coat of Arms of the President in proper colors.

[41] Edward C. Kuhn, a designer of many early U.S. Army insignia and coats of arms, made a series of watercolors of older presidential flags.