diff --git a/esphome/components/web_server_base/web_server_base.h b/esphome/components/web_server_base/web_server_base.h
index 8da0322565..8c7746e8eb 100644
--- a/esphome/components/web_server_base/web_server_base.h
+++ b/esphome/components/web_server_base/web_server_base.h
@@ -105,8 +105,8 @@ class WebServerBase : public Component {
   std::shared_ptr<AsyncWebServer> get_server() const { return server_; }
   float get_setup_priority() const override;
 
-  void set_auth_username(const std::string &auth_username) { credentials_.username = auth_username; }
-  void set_auth_password(const std::string &auth_password) { credentials_.password = auth_password; }
+  void set_auth_username(std::string auth_username) { credentials_.username = auth_username; }
+  void set_auth_password(std::string auth_password) { credentials_.password = auth_password; }
 
   void add_handler(AsyncWebHandler *handler);