Harry And Meghan’s Oprah Interview Renews Scrutiny Of Royals’ $100 Million Annual Price Tag

The dust hasn’t quite settled yet from Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s bombshell interview with Oprah, which aired on Sunday night. 

The interview highlighted that Meghan and Harry are desperate for financial independence.

And, it sparked interest with viewers who are curious about just how expensive it is to maintain the Royal Family.

Related: The Queen Breaks Her Silence After Meghan And Harry Accuse Royals Of Racism In Oprah Interview

Harry Discusses Leaving Royal Family

In the interview, Harry opened up about their decision to step down as senior royals last year.

He cited a “lack of support and lack of understanding.”

In a surprising revelation, Harry added that after stepping down, he and his wife were cut off financially and stripped of their security detail.

“From my perspective, I just needed enough money to pay for security to keep my family safe,” said Harry, according to Yahoo News.

While Harry did not go into detail about exactly how much this would cost, Kent Moyer, chief of The World Protection Group, told Forbes that around-the-clock security would likely cost around $4 million a year. 

When Meghan and Harry first left the U.K. and moved to Canada, the cost for their security was a hotly debated topic. Taxpayers made it clear that they had no interest in footing the bill for the British royals.

Related: New Report Reveals True Taxpayer Cost of Prince Harry And Meghan Markle’s Stay In Canada

Since leaving the royal family, Meghan and Harry have been living off of his $10 million inheritance that he got from his late mother, Princess Diana.

Prince Harry said one thing made their escape to the U.S. possible, allowing them to pay for the security they required.

“I brought what my mom left me and, without that, we would not have been able to do this, so touching back on what my mother would think of this, I think she saw it coming. I certainly felt her presence throughout this whole process.”

More money is on the way for them, however, as sources say that the five-year deal that they signed with Netflix could be worth up to $100 million.

On top of that, they also inked a three-year deal with Spotify that is estimated to be worth between $15 million and $18 million.

Cost Of Maintaining Royal Family

While this may all sound like a lot, the cost of maintaining the royal family is much higher, and much of the burden falls on British taxpayers.

The latest Sovereign Grant account confirmed that the cost of maintaining the British monarchy between 2019-2020 was a whopping £69.4 million (roughly $96 million today).

The Sovereign Grant is funded by British taxpayers. The money is used to fund the lifestyle of the royals and pays for travel, security, staffers, and more.

The value is calculated based on how much the Crown Estate, which are all the royal properties, bring in.

For 2019-2020, this number was £82.4 million (~$114 million), with the royals spending £69.4 million of this on official duties, including £21.2 million (~$29.5 million) on Buckingham Palace renovations.

Related: Harry And Meghan Under Pressure To Return The ‘Millions’ They Owe The UK

Meghan And Harry’s Income As Royals

When Meghan and Harry were still working royals, they had access to the Sovereign Grant. It accounted for 5% of their total income.

The rest of their income lay in the Duchy of Cornwall. It’s a private estate account that is maintained by Harry’s father, Prince Charles. 

Now that the Meghan and Harry have left the royal family, they no longer have access to either of these funds.

While Meghan and Harry did give up a lot financially upon leaving the royal family, they obviously won’t need to worry about money anytime soon. They’ll bring a lot with their massive entertainment deals.

No wonder that they felt so safe airing the Royal Family’s dirty laundry to Oprah. They undoubtedly know they won’t need to depend on them financially in the years to come. 

Must be nice. 

Related: Jimmy Kimmel Blasts ‘Inbreeding’ Royals After Meghan And Harry’s Interview With Oprah