After ‘Megxit’ – how much do Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have in the bank already, now the couple is cutting off from Queen Elizabeth’s royal purse?

Jan 15 , 2020

Prince Harry's net worth is well into eight-figures. Photo: Getty Images

Between Harry’s inherited land wealth, annual seven-figure allowance from father Prince Charles, and Meghan’s earnings from starring in network drama Suits, the couple’s ‘financial independence’ should get off to a rosy start

In case you missed the news – Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announced they are working to become “financially independent” and will be taking a “step back” from the royal family. This bombshell dropped in a statement shared on their official website, and an accompanying Instagram post, on January 8.

A key component of the shake-up is that while the couple will continue “to fully support Her Majesty The Queen”, they will no longer receive money from the “sovereign grant” provided by the treasury and they will be free to work professionally.

So, their lifestyle will effectively no longer be maintained by the crown – but that doesn't mean they don't already have financing separate from it.

Before marrying Prince Harry, Markle was earning close to half a million dollars a year starring in the USA Network drama Suits, plus a five-figure income from endorsement deals and sponsorship. Money.com reported in 2018 that her total net worth was estimated to be US$5 million.

Prince Harry, Prince Philip and Prince William. Photo: Getty

Their combined net worth, however, is more than five times that. Prince Harry's net worth is at least US$25 million and as much as US$40 million, according to 2018 estimates from Money.com.

Here's where all that money comes from.

Along with Prince William and Kate Middleton, Harry receives an annual seven-figure allowance from his father, heir to the throne Prince Charles, which is used to cover expenses like travel and wardrobe.

Between April 2016 and March 2017, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Harry split nearly US$5 million in allowances from their father, according to an annual review released by Clarence House.

Prince Charles derives that money, in part, from a private estate called the Duchy of Cornwall, which has funded the royal family's public and private lives for nearly 700 years.

Most of the British monarchy's wealth comes from inherited lands and investments. The Duchy of Cornwall, specifically, provided a total of US$28.8 million, including Harry and William's allowance, to Prince Charles and his wife Camilla between 2016 and 2017.