As the future Queen Consort of England, Kate Middleton’s net worth is pretty flush. The 41-year-old princess is currently worth a cool $10 million, and she shares a very robust bank account with her husband, Prince William. But now that her father-in-law, King Charles, has taken over as Britain’s newest monarch, we want to know: Did this change her financial status?
Keep scrolling for details on the princess's net worth and how she earned her wealth.
Understandably, the royal family is relatively private about financial matters. However, Kate Middleton’s net worth is an estimated $10 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. Meanwhile, her husband is worth a staggering $100 million—a significant increase from his $40 million net worth back in 2011.
Although the princess was technically a commoner prior to marrying Prince William, she comes from a wealthy family. The Middletons own a popular party supply business called Party Pieces, and their shared net worth is about $50 million. Princess Catherine used to work for the family business before she married Prince William in 2011. It’s believed that the party company’s worth increased once the prince and princess got married, but, like the royal family, the Middletons are private about their financial affairs.
When Prince William and Princess Catherine were the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, they had access to an allowance through the Duchy of Cornwall, which is reportedly worth a whopping $1.3 billion.
So, in short, the princess's already robust net worth increased significantly when she became a duchess.
The Duchy of Cornwall is a private trust fund that was established by Edward III in 1337. It was previously owned by King Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles, who made $28 million from the estate in 2018 alone, according to CNN.
As payment for their royal duties, the Prince and Princess of Wales receive an annual income from the duchy, which is comprised of real estate, land, rental properties and other cash-positive businesses. The duchy also reportedly paid for the Princess of Wale's clothes and other things she required for official royal business.
When King Charles III ascended the British throne, Princess Catherine and her husband became the Prince and Princess of Wales. Fortunately for them both, that meant a change for their bank accounts as well.
One big financial perk was that they inherited the $1.2 billion Duchy of Cornwall estate, as well as a special Welsh home from King Charles.
The exact amount hasn't been confirmed, but the Prince and Princess of Wales also receive a portion of the Sovereign Grant—a taxpayer fund that's used to support official royal duties.
Once called the "Civil List," it was first established in 1760 by King George. The royal website reads, "Funding for the Sovereign Grant comes from a percentage of the profits of the Crown Estate revenue (initially set at 15%). The grant will be reviewed every five years by the Royal Trustees (the Prime Minister, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Keeper of the Privy Purse)."
Queen Elizabeth left the vast majority of her priceless jewelry collection for Princess Catherine, and it's reportedly worth billions of pounds. However, royal expert Katie Nicholl explained that there's a “pecking order.” She told Marie Claire, “There is a hierarchy in all of this. The Queen Consort, really, gets first choice of the Queen’s jewelry. And after that is Princess of Wales, of course, Kate.”
The late monarch's iconic jewelry collection includes tiaras, crowns, necklaces, brooches, earrings and more.
All we can say is, wow.
