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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
National
Laura Elston

How much does the royal family cost? A breakdown of the key figures

Buckingham Palace has released its annual Sovereign Grant report (Aaron Chown/PA) - (PA Wire)

Here are some of the key figures from the royal accounts for 2024-2025.

– £132 million – The amount of Sovereign Grant the monarchy will receive in two years’ time in 2026/27 because of the £1.1 billion Crown Estate wind farm deal profits.

– £91.4 million – Extra income the monarchy is receiving over the next two years (2025-26 and 2026-27).

– £86.3 million – The total taxpayer-funded Sovereign Grant in 2024-25, the same as the previous year.

– £85.2 million – Official net expenditure by the monarchy, a fall of £3.9 million or 4% from £89.1 million in 2023/2024.

The official expenditure of the King is met from public funds in exchange for the surrender of Crown Estate profits to the Government (David Davies/PA) (PA Wire)

– £41.2 million – Cost of property maintenance, compared with £47 million the previous year.

– £4.7 million – Cost of official royal travel, a rise of £500,000 from £4.2 million the previous year.

– £475,000 – Cost of 141 helicopter journeys made by members of the royal family, costing less than £17,000 each.

– £400,500 – The most expensive journey – the King and Queen’s charter flight to Samoa and thena  scheduled flight back to London.

– £80,100 – Cost of the King and Queen’s charter flight to and from Belfast and helicopters around Northern Ireland in March.

Staff costs at Buckingham Palace are paid for by the Sovereign Grant (Aaron Chown/PA) (PA Archive)

– £3.2 million – Cost of housekeeping and hospitality for the Royal Household, up £600,000 from £2.6 million.

– 539 – Full-time equivalent staff paid for from the Sovereign Grant, including fixed term contracts, compared with 523 the previous year.

– £29.9 million – The wage bill for staff, up £2 million from £27.9 million.

– 123,000 – Total number of correspondence received by the Royal Household, including 41,000 with well-wishes for the King and the Princess of Wales.

Performers dance as the Prince of Wales arrives at the Earthshot Prize Awards in Cape Town (Phil Noble/PA) (PA Archive)

– £605,000 – The cost of landscaping the East Terrace Garden at Windsor Castle with a new flowing pathway for the public, more biodiverse flower beds and two orchards.

– 1,900 – Official engagements by members of the royal family in the UK and overseas, compared with 2,300 last year.

– 93,000 guests attended 828 events at official Royal Palaces

– 12.1% – Proportion of staff from ethnic minority backgrounds working for Buckingham Palace, compared with 11.4% in 2023-2024. The target is 14% by December 2025.

The Princess of Wales talks to guests during a royal garden party at Buckingham Palace in May (Aaron Chown/PA) (PA Wire)

– £21.5 million – Income earned to supplement the Sovereign Grant – an increase of £1.7 million or nearly 9% from £19.8 million last year, driven by record visitors to Buckingham Palace during the Summer Opening to see the newly opened East Wing.

– £22.9 million – The Prince of Wales’s annual private income from the Duchy of Cornwall estate, down £700,000 from £23.6 million the previous year.

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