King Charles, also called Charles III, has been the king of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth Realms since 2022 when he took over from his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. As a part of the royal family, King Charles has a lot of rights and resources at his disposal, such as palaces, estates, and valuable assets.
But it’s hard to say exactly how much he is worth because most of the royal family’s money is held in trust and handled by the Crown Estate. In this answer, we will look at the different figures and factors that go into figuring out how much King Charles is worth.
King Charles Personal Net Worth
According to estimates, King Charles is worth £600 million, or almost $1.1 billion. The King’s personal fortune surpasses that of his late mother the Queen, whose net worth was £370 million ($684 million), according to an analysis of the British monarch’s different sources of income by The Times for its Sunday Times Rich List.
A former staffer told the publication that Charles had amassed a sizeable net worth over the years by becoming cautious with money after his expensive divorce from Diana, Princess of Wales, in 1996, during which he gave her a lump sum payment of $31 million and a $740,000 yearly salary. After that wipe-out [of capital], “he became wise in tucking away some money from the Duchy [of Cornwall],” the insider claimed.
Charles’ income is primarily derived from the aforementioned duchy (a royal domain). In the UK, there are two duchies: the Duchy of Lancaster and the Duchy of Cornwall, both of which are vast property empires that invest mostly inland. The Duchy of Cornwall is typically passed down to the successor to the throne, and William, Prince of Wales, who became king last year, is now in charge of managing it.
The Duchy of Lancaster is currently held by the current king, Charles, who inherited it from his mother following her passing in September. The value of the Duchy of Cornwall is put at $1.8 billion. Between 2011 and 2022, while Charles was in charge of the Duchy of Cornwall, its annual profits rose by 42.6% to $47 million.
Charles earned $393.6 million from the duchy during that time. Though Charles has voluntarily chosen to pay income tax since 1993, the income is not subject to tax payments. The Times claims that a significant portion of this income comes from “renting commercial properties” in other regions of the UK.
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How Does King Charles Make Money?
According to CNN, Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles (now Camilla, Queen Consort) received 90% of their income from the Duchy of Cornwall, a private estate founded in 1337 to sustain the heir to the throne. Land in rural and urban areas, islands, and rented cottages in Wales, Cornwall, and other UK regions fund the Duchy of Cornwall. Charles and Camilla received $28 million from Cornwall in 2018.
Charles and Camilla got $1.8 million from the Sovereign Grant, taxpayer money granted annually to the British royal family, and $627,000 from various UK agencies. In 1760, King George III gave up his Parliamentary salary to receive a fixed annual stipend for himself and future generations of the British royal family. The Civil List became the Sovereign Grant in 2012.
According to BBC, the British royal family receives a stipend in exchange for giving the government its Crown Estate income, totaling £14.1 billion. The monarch earns 25% of Crown Estate income annually. The money covers property maintenance, utilities, royal family trips, and royal employee wages.
Security and royal ceremonies are supported separately from the funding. CNN reported that Charles and Camilla spent 50% of their annual income on travel and royal duties and 25% on taxes. Prince William and Prince Harry, non-official purchases, and a royal savings account received $8.9 million.
How Much Did King Charles Inherit From Queen Elizabeth?
After his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, passed away on September 8, 2022, Charles succeeded her as the new monarch of the United Kingdom. The Queen’s husband, Prince Philip, who passed away on April 9, 2021, had one kid, Charles, who was the oldest. When the Queen passed away, Buckingham Palace released a statement saying, “The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.” The King and the Queen Consort will spend this evening and tomorrow in Balmoral before flying back to London.
Forbes claims that Charles received the Queen’s $500 million in personal assets as his inheritance after her passing. In addition to her real estate holdings, which include Sandringham House in Norfolk, England, and the Balmoral Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, where the Queen passed away, these assets also include her personal investments, art collection, jewelry collection, and rare stamps.
In addition, Charles received the Queen Mother’s $70 million in assets, which included a stamp collection, exquisite china, jewelry, horses, a priceless collection of Faberge eggs, and works of art by Monet, Nash, and Carl Fabergé. A 1993 deal between the British royal family and former Prime Minister John Major prevented Charles from having to pay inheritance tax on the money he received from the Queen.
According to the agreement, the United Kingdom’s 40% inheritance tax is not applied to inheritances passed from one sovereign to another. The pact was made to save the British royal family’s fortune from depleting.
