Amazon's latest proxy filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission reveals that executive chairman Jeff Bezos continues to receive an annual salary of $81,400.
The 2026 proxy statement, filed Thursday, shows the 62-year-old founder has maintained this specific wage since 1998. At the time, the $81,400 salary was more than double the median salary for men in the United States.
According to the filing, Bezos personally requested not to receive additional compensation. "Mr. Bezos requested not to receive additional compensation and has never received annual cash compensation in excess of his current amount," the document stated.
While his base pay remains static, the company spent $1.6 million on security and business travel for Bezos last year. Amazon defended these costs in the filing, noting they are "reasonable and necessary" given his low salary and lack of stock-based compensation.
Compensation structures favor stock over cash
Bezos's wealth is primarily tied to his 8% stake in the company, valued at approximately $225 billion at Friday's stock price. This massive equity stake allows him to maintain a salary that falls below the average earnings of a U.S. construction worker.
Amazon’s compensation strategy for its leadership focuses on long-term shareholder value through stock rather than cash. The company stated its executive salaries are designed to be "significantly less than those paid to senior leadership at similarly situated companies."
This trend is visible in the compensation of current CEO Andy Jassy. While Jassy's base salary was $365,000 last year, his stock-based compensation increased by nearly $473,000 between 2024 and 2025.
Bezos previously addressed his decision to avoid extra pay during a New York Times DealBook Summit interview. "I already owned a significant amount of the company, and I just didn’t feel good about taking more," he said. "I just felt, ‘How could I possibly need more incentive?’"
