Meghan Markle Might Spend as Much as Ten Times What Kate Middleton Does on Clothes This Year

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published 15 July 2018

Dressing like a royal isn't cheap—and that's an understatement. Mere mortals don't have the kind of money required to dress like the likes of Kate Middleton (opens in new tab) and Meghan Markle (opens in new tab), but especially the latter. According to a report from the Daily Mail (opens in new tab), Meghan's wardrobe is on track to cost significantly more than Kate's this year.

According to the Daily Mail, Kate spent (opens in new tab) £119,000 on new outfits in 2017, and just (yeah, I know, just) £100,000 in 2016. If that sounds like a ton of money to spend on clothes in a year (because, let's be clear, it is), then take a seat and have a paper bag ready for the next part.

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Per the Daily Mail: "Meghan's clothing (opens in new tab) budget has already outstripped that. Indeed, if she continues at her current rate, she could spend almost £1 million by the end of the year."

How is that possible, you wonder? Well, first of all, royals aren't allowed to accept free gifts or loans (opens in new tab), meaning that any designer digs they're spotted in were purchased outright. And Meghan has already shown that she loves designer clothes. Since tying the knot with Prince Harry, Meghan has stepped out in pieces by big name designers like Dior, Givenchy, Prada, and Chanel.

During Meghan and Harry's recent trip to Dublin (opens in new tab), the Duchess of Sussex reportedly wore £28,000 worth of clothes in just 24 hours.

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Meghan and Harry don't personally pay for the clothes they wear to public engagements. That bill is footed by Harry's dad, Prince Charles (opens in new tab). Prior to the royal wedding, Meghan was responsible for buying her own clothes for appearances and reportedly spent almost $30,000 (opens in new tab) of her own money on clothing for royal events through March 2017.

Kayleigh Roberts is a freelance writer and editor with more than 10 years of professional experience. Her byline has appeared in Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, The Atlantic, Allure, Entertainment Weekly, MTV, Bustle, Refinery29, Girls’ Life Magazine, Just Jared, and Tiger Beat, among other publications. She's a graduate of the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.