Royals spend an estimated £2.5 million per year on energy bills
The royal family is estimated to spend £2.5 million a year powering their ten best-known residences[1], with Buckingham Palace topping the list, costing £1 million a year[2]
Windsor Castle, the world’s oldest occupied fortress, has the next biggest energy bill of almost £400,000 a year in heating and electricity[3]
Efforts to improve sustainability at royal homes include using energy efficient LED lighting at Buckingham Palace[4] and solar panels at Clarence House[5]
The Queen also saves 40% off her electricity bill at Windsor Castle thanks to a hydroelectric power scheme on the River Thames[4]
Harry and Meghan’s energy bill has grown by 17% since moving from Frogmore Cottage to their 1,350 square metre LA home, in part due to air conditioning and their swimming pool[6]
Uswitch.com has created an energy bill calculator, so people can work out how much it would cost to run their dream palace or mansion.
The royal family is estimated to be spending £2.5 million per year on their energy bills at their ten best-known palaces and castles[1], according to Uswitch.com, the comparison and switching service.
Buckingham Palace — with its 775 rooms, 77,000 square metres of floor space and swimming pool — is estimated to be the most expensive royal residence in the UK, costing £1.1 million a year to power[2]. Windsor Castle has the next highest energy bill of £393,523, with Kensington Palace third with £260,448[3].
The Queen has taken efforts to make her palaces more sustainable, with a network of 60 smart meters monitoring usage across the royal estate and more efficient LED lighting being trialled[4].
At Windsor Castle, the world’s oldest occupied castle, electricity bills are reduced by 40% thanks to a hydroelectric power scheme on the River Thames that saves the Queen about £262,349 a year, reducing them from a potential bill of £655,872[4].
Table - Estimated Royal energy bills of the ten best-known residences
| Property | Area of property (sq m) | Annual energy cost | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Buckingham Palace | 77,000 | £1,127,942 |
| 2 | Windsor Castle | 44,965 | £393,523 |
| 3 | Kensington Palace | 17,844 | £260,448 |
| 4 | St James's Palace | 16,482 | £240,590 |
| 5 | Palace of Holyroodhouse | 11,000 | £160,662 |
| 6 | Balmoral Castle | 8,160 | £119,255 |
| 7 | Sandringham House | 8,068 | £117,913 |
| 8 | Hillsborough Castle | 4,200 | £61,518 |
| 9 | Clarence House | 3,524 | £51,662 |
| 10 | Frogmore Cottage | 706 | £10,575 |
Source: Uswitch.com
The Queen is due to make Balmoral Castle more sustainable, after winning permission for a 2MW hydroelectric turbine to generate £650,000 worth of power, any surplus energy sent to the National Grid[7]. Balmoral already has one hydroelectric turbine, providing 100kW of power[8].
Prince Charles, who has campaigned on environmental issues for decades, has installed solar panels at Clarence House, uses low-energy light bulbs and has improved the insulation at his properties[5].
Harry and Meghan’s former home Frogmore Cottage had the lowest energy costs of the ten royal homes surveyed, estimated at £10,575[6]. They are believed to have installed a green energy unit when they lived there to provide eco-friendly heat, hot water and electricity[9].
However, moving to their 1,350 square metre Santa Barbara home has increased Harry and Meghan’s energy bills to £12,418 a year due to the cost of air conditioning and running their swimming pool[6].
Uswitch.com has produced a calculator so people can discover how much it would cost to run their dream home.
Sarah Broomfield, energy expert at Uswitch.com, comments: “The royal family have gone to great lengths to make their palaces and castles more sustainable, but the age and size of these homes mean they still require a lot of energy to run.
“Whatever type of home you live in, palace or not, there are lots of ways to keep our energy consumption down.
“Turning off lights when you leave the room, turning off appliances at the plug when they’re not in use, and adding draught-proofing are small changes that can all add up to big savings on your energy bills.
“Switching tariffs is another great way to keep those utility bills down. If you’re on a standard variable tariff, you can save money by switching, so it is always worthwhile doing a search online and comparing energy deals.”
Find out how much you could save a year with Uswitch.com here.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Ross Stebbing
Phone: 07827 836 709
Email: ross.stebbing@rvu.co.uk
Twitter: @UswitchPR
Notes to editors:
Calculations are based on the assumption that properties are running on domestic tariffs.
1. See first table in release.
2. Buckingham Palace. Energy experts estimate 200kWh per m2 for an old house. Average price of gas according to the Energy Saving Trust is 4.17p/kWh. Calculation: 77,000m2 x 200kWh/m2 x 0.0417 = £642,180 cost of gas per year. Cost of running a swimming pool estimated at £5,000 a year. Average UK electricity bill is £563. Average UK house is 90.18m2. £563 / 90.18m2 = £6.24 per m2. £6.24 x 77,000m2 = £480,480 cost of electricity. 40,000 15W light bulbs on for eight hours a day on average = 40,000 x 0.015kW x 8 x 365 = £28,663. Total energy cost = £642,180 + £5,000 + £480,480 + £164 + £282 = £1,127,942.
3. Windsor Castle. Calculation: 44,965m2 x 200kWh/m2 x 0.0417 = £375,008. £6.24 x 44,965m2 = £280,582. Total energy cost = £375,008 + £280,582 + £282 = £655,872. Kensington Palace. Calculation: 17,844m2 x 200kWh/m2 x 0.0417 = £148,818. £6.24 x 17,844m2 = £111,347. Total energy cost = £148,818 + £111,347 + £282 = £260,448.
4. The Royal Household and the Environment
5. Prince of Wales.gov
6. Frogmore Cottage calculation: 706m2 x 200kWh/m2 x 0.0417 = £5,888. £6.24 x 706m2 = £4,405. Total energy cost = £5,888 + £4,405 + £282 = £10,575.
LA home calculation. Median LA energy use is 3.7kWh/sq ft according to Energy Atlas. This is equal to 39.8kWh/m2. 1,350m2 x 39.8kWh/m2 = 53,730kWh per year. The US Energy Information Administration estimates that 4% of domestic energy use in California is for air conditioning, 25% for water heating, 27% for space heating, and 44% for appliances, electronics and lighting. Assuming that water heating and space heating use gas, and air conditioning and appliances etc use electricity, this equates to the average domestic energy bill comprising 38.4% gas and 61.6% electricity. So 38.4% of 53,730kWh = 20,632kWh gas. The remainder, 33,098kWh, is electricity. 20,632kWh x 0.0417 = £860 of gas a year. 33,098kWh x 0.1636 = £5,414 of electricity a year. Running an outdoor pool costs approximately £5,000 in electricity a year. Total energy cost = £860 + £5,000 + £5,414 = £12,418.
7. The Telegraph
8. Herald Scotland
9. The Sun
About Uswitch
Uswitch is one of the UK’s top comparison websites for home services switching, including broadband, mobiles, SIM Only and insurance. We’ve saved consumers over £2.5 billion off their bills since we launched in September 2000.
In 2022, Uswitch launched its free mobile app, Utrack, to help consumers manage their home energy costs. By connecting to their smart meter, users can track their energy usage hourly, get dynamic insights and calculate potential savings with handy tips.
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