Since Meghan and Harry got engaged, the royal clothing budget has gone up by £1.5m

Rex
(Image credit: Shutterstock/Rex)

Dressing when you're a member of the Royal family is no joke, as you not only have to look on point all the time, but you have to abide to countless style rules too, like not wearing wedges or having to wear tights.

So it comes as no surprise that the Royal family clothing bill comes in quite hefty. Last year, according to The Telegraph, Prince Charles reportedly spent £4.96m, compared to £2.52 the year before - that's a £1.43m increase.

This coincided with the first four months of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle being engaged in November last year, and will have included the high number of appearances they both made around the big news.

However, despite appearances, the jump in budget has got nothing to do with Meghan. In fact, before she joined the Royal family, she spent her own money on outfits for Royal engagements.

Instead, it has everything to do with the Queen. Quite simply, since she has cut back on royal duties, the rest of the family, including Kate and William, and Harry and Meghan, have had to step up and attend more events, therefore needing more clothes.

And fun fact for you: Prince Charles is actually the one who forks the bill for the his sons and their wives' clothing, from the income he receives from the Duchy of Cornwall.

However, travel is paid for by the Queen and comes from the Sovereign Fund, which is essentially taxpayer money.

Penny Goldstone

Penny Goldstone is the Contributing Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK. She writes about catwalk trends and the latest high street and Instagram sartorial must-haves. She also helms the Women Who Win franchise.

She has worked in fashion for over 10 years, contributing to publications such as Cosmopolitan, Red, Good Housekeeping, and Stylist.