Exactly how much is each British royal actually worth?
Whether you admire them for their established birthrights or myriad of leadership qualities, the esteemed British family is revered throughout countless nations.
Royals seem to have it all – power, prestige and perhaps most importantly, money.
From gargantuan oil supplies to significant charitable donations, the wealth of the British royal family is quite substantial.
Surprisingly, most of the money used to fund the British monarchy doesn’t actually come from the taxpayer – members of the royal family are all wealthy on their own.
With the combined sums of inheritances, crown estates and allowances, these royals are able to spare no expense when it comes to enjoying the better things in life.
Although we can’t directly indulge ourselves in the abundant realm of high jewellery, impeccable art and acres of land that comprise their lifestyle, we can revel in their considerable net worths to a cup of herbal tea – with our pinkies raised in the air of course.
Meghan Markle’s Net Worth
Net worth: $5 million
In the weeks before her wedding to Prince Harry, there was much speculation about whether the American actress was actually worth more than her then-fiancé. Spoiler: She’s not, though that wasn’t even close to the strangest conspiracy theory about Meghan and Harry. But she still had quite the net worth when she entered the Royal family at around $5 million, Newsweek reports.
She reportedly made $50,000 per episode portraying Rachel Zane on the TV show Suits, which she starred in for seven seasons. In addition, she had roles in several other shows and movies, like 90210, Remember Me, and The Candidate.
Acting wasn’t her only source of income; the Duchess of Sussex also released two clothing lines through the Canadian retailer Reitmans, promoted sponsored content on Instagram and her lifestyle website, The Tig, and worked as a freelance calligrapher early in her career.
Recently inked deals with Netflix may also have pushed this figure considerably northwards.
Kate Middleton’s Net Worth
Net worth: $7-10 million
Middleton’s story has often been overplayed as a rags-to-riches ascent to royalty, but that’s actually far from the case; her family held substantial holdings with a collective net worth of $50 million.
Most of this derives from an online party supply business called Party Pieces, which Breakthrough Branding has dubbed “the UK’s leading online and catalogue party company.”
Prince Charles also covers her official staff and wardrobe expenses, and some of her travel costs are often funded by the countries she visits, which means she gets to keep most of her personal money in the bank – one of the many benefits of having a prince for a husband, we assume.
Although her net worth has been reported to be between $7 million to $10 million in terms of savings, her national worth with clothing sales and tourism revenue is rumoured to be much higher.
In any case, her combined wealth with husband Prince William is said to increase once Prince Charles ascends to the throne.
Prince Philip’s Net Worth
Net worth: $30 million
Although he never took on the title of king due to strict monarchy regulations, royalty still pumps through his blood and his net worth is estimated at $30 million.
Despite having retired from his Royal duties, Prince Philip still receives an annual Parliamentary annuity of £359,000 from the Sovereign Grant just for his royal title.
According to a UK Government site, Prince Philip “still requires office support for non-public official duties.”
Prince William and Prince Harry’s Net Worth
Net worth: $40 million each
According to Town & Country, Prince William and his younger brother Prince Harry gathered most of their wealth on their 30th birthdays through an inheritance – about $13m in trust and estate from their late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales.
At the age of 21, the two sons gained access to a lavish $450,000 per year investment profit. They also receive an “allowance” from the Duchy of Cornwall, which is managed by their father. This isn’t the typical allowance we remember from our parents, however; it was reported to be a total $4.6 million in 2015. This grand sum covers most of their staff, travel, and wardrobe expenses.
Even before Harry stepped down from royal duties to make his own way, both princes were already cranking out their own paychecks as well.
Prince William also works as a helicopter pilot for East Anglian Air Ambulance but donates his entire $62,000 annual salary to charity.
Prince Harry earnt his own salary as an officer in the Army Air Corps until his departure from the service – as captain, he was said to earn an additional $45,000 a year.
Prince Charles’s Net Worth
Net worth: $100 million
As the next in line to the English throne, Prince Charles reigns over the highest British royal family net worth after Queen Elizabeth: $100 million.
According to CNN, a significant bulk of this stems also from the Duchy of Cornwall, a private estate that owns and operates land in rural and urban areas, as well as various islands and cottages in Wales and Cornwall.
The Duchy of Cornwall was established in 1937 to ensure that the heir to the throne would have a steady income.
Although he doesn’t actually own the colossal real estate portfolio, Prince Charles’s royal position enables him to receive income from it as the land’s sole beneficiary.
In 2018, the estate paid Charles and Camilla $28 million. The couple also receives a portion of the Queen’s Sovereign Grant.
Queen Elizabeth II’s Net Worth
Net worth: $550 million
Much of this handsome number derives from owning property holdings like the $140 million Balmoral Castle in the Scottish Highlands, the $65 million Sandringham House, stud and fruit farms, marine land throughout the UK, and one of the world’s largest stamp collections built by her grandfather.
The estates she owns were inherited from her father, the late King George VI. The assets belonging to the Crown Estate are not included in her net worth, but she does get to enjoy them too as one of the many perks of being queen. This encompasses $10 billion worth of real estate, Buckingham Palace and the Royal Art collection.
The Queen also receives an annual government stipend and because this wealth is tied to her position, she could never sell the royal assets.
This stipend does include a bit of taxpayers’ money (the Sovereign Grant which paid her $105 million for the 2019-2020 year), combined with the Duchy of Lancaster, another collection of properties (separate from the Crown Estate) used to generate the Queen’s private income.
According to Newsweek, this estate is estimated to generate around $26 million a year and is used to cover the costs the Sovereign Grant does not.
And it doesn’t end there. The Queen also has private collections of valuable furniture and jewellery, which Forbes estimates at $110 million.
Prince George and Princess Charlotte’s Net Worth
Net worth: $3.6 billion, $5 billion
Apparently, being a youngster in the royal monarchy comes with some pretty big bucks. Prince George is estimated at a net worth of $3 billion, but Princess Charlotte takes the cake from the entire family with a whopping $5 billion.
The reason for Charlotte’s incredibly high value is in large part due to her fashion influence; taking off closely after her mother, the stylish tot has eyes on her style all over the nation.
Deemed as the “Charlotte effect,” a yellow pastel patterned cardigan worn by the princess from a popular British department store sold out in 24 hours, according to Moneyish.
Regardless, their substantial value doesn’t mean the royal children can go around flashing their Amex cards whenever they want. Since the royal children haven’t physically received inheritances (or worked a day in their life), their net worths are calculated by their value to the UK economy.
Because they believe the children have the potential to drive billions in sales, their net worths have been determined as so.
Image: Getty Images
Written by Hana Hong. This article first appeared on Reader’s Digest. For more of what you love from the world’s best-loved magazine, here’s our best subscription offer.