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Meghan Markle’s Net Worth Has Only Increased Since Marrying Prince Harry — Find Out How Much!
When Duchess Meghan (née Markle) walked down the aisle at St. George’s Chapel to married Prince Harry in May 2018, she also married into the British royal family. It’s was a definite status upgrade, especially because Queen Elizabeth and her heirs make up one of the wealthiest dynasties in the world — $88 billion to be exact, Forbes reported. So how did Meghan’s net worth change since becoming the Duchess of Sussex?
According to Celebrity Net Worth, the 38-year-old is valued at $5 million on her own. However, since her and Harry’s net worths combined after tying the royal knot — the 35-year-old duke is valued at $40 million, the same site notes — Meg is now believed to be worth about $45 million. Not too shabby for a power couple, huh?
The royal family likes to keep hush-hush on their money status, but Harry earned his big bucks thanks to a trust from his late mother, Princess Diana, an inheritance from his grandmother and his salary from his days as a British Army captain.
So how did Megan rack up a pretty penny before marrying into one of the wealthiest families in the world? Well, she reportedly pulled in $50,000 for each episode of the USA drama Suits — on which she was a series regular for seven seasons. The duchess also supposedly earned herself $177,000 for her role Remember Me, as well as $160,000 for The Candidate and $145,000 for The Boys and Girls Guide to Getting Down.
And to think she started off her career as a freelance calligrapher and a Deal or No Deal briefcase girl!
This means Meghan and Harry will definitely be able to take care of themselves — and their 8-month-old son, Archie Harrison, born in May 2019 — as they “step back” from their royal duties and “balance” their time between the U.K. and North America as a “financially independent” family.
“After many months of reflection and internal discussions, we have chosen to make a transition this year in starting to carve out a progressive new role within this institution. We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the Royal Family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to fully support Her Majesty The Queen,” their Instagram statement from Wednesday, January 8, began. “It is with your encouragement, particularly over the last few years, that we feel prepared to make this adjustment. We now plan to balance our time between the United Kingdom and North America, continuing to honour our duty to The Queen, the Commonwealth, and our patronages. This geographic balance will enable us to raise our son with an appreciation for the royal tradition into which he was born, while also providing our family with the space to focus on the next chapter, including the launch of our new charitable entity. We look forward to sharing the full details of this exciting next step in due course, as we continue to collaborate with Her Majesty The Queen, The Prince of Wales, The Duke of Cambridge and all relevant parties. Until then, please accept our deepest thanks for your continued support.”
The actress is certainly more famous than her sister-in-law, Duchess Kate (née Middleton), was before she became an item with Prince William, but Meghan’s premarital net worth actually ranks lower than Kate’s did. The U.K.’s Metro newspaper has reported that Kate was hardly a “commoner” when she married into the family — she was worth about $10 million because as her family was worth around $52 million at the time.
And if you think all of that sounds like obscene wealth, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Newsweek revealed that Harry’s father, Prince Charles, is worth a reported $100 million and Queen Elizabeth is worth a reported $500 million. Though the value of the entire British monarchy itself is around $88 billion, only $33 billion of that sum is tangible wealth since the rest is the family’s value to their country’s economy. “They are like a giant PR campaign for the U.K.,” Brand Finance CEO David Haigh told Reuters.
