Kate Middleton Loses Top Royal Spot In New Poll — but She's Likely Thrilled About It
While Kate Middleton enjoys immense popularity usually, she was beaten for the top spot in recent polls.
When one thinks of the British royal family, Kate Middleton is surely one of the first few names one imagines. Over the years, the Princess of Wales has earned immense public goodwill and is adored by royal fans. In fact, her popularity is so undisputed that it would hardly be a surprise if she tops public polls, but it would certainly be news if she doesn’t. Something similar happened this month, as one royal, none other than her husband, Prince William, dethroned Middleton for the numero uno spot in the recent favorability polls.
With a whopping 76% favorability, William emerged as the most popular royal in the July 2026 YouGov polls. Middleton was a close second, with 74% favorable ratings. The royal couple has consistently been viewed positively. So, while the Princess of Wales might have been a favorite for the most popular royal, the Prince of Wales has always been a strong competitor. Interestingly, the pair is highly competitive and has admittedly never finished a tennis match. Wonder if the polls ever make a jovial entry into their light-hearted banter.
The hardest-working royal, Princess Anne, is another fan favorite and has continuously been viewed positively. True to her legacy, the Princess Royal finished third behind William and Middleton with a 70% rating. On the other hand, King Charles’ popularity has been nothing short of a rollercoaster ride. It has seen the most jubilant peaks and the most painful dips. But in the past several years, the monarch has remained largely favorable. This month, he finished fourth in the popularity polls with a 62% rating. The favorable views were almost double the 31% negative rating. On average, around 59-60% of Britons have held a positive view of the King in the past two years, according to YouGov polls.
Prince Edward and Duchess Sophie have also garnered a lot of love. The duo placed fifth and sixth, respectively, in the YouGov polls this month. While the Duke of Edinburgh received a 53% rating, the Duchess was close with 51% in her favor. Queen Camilla is another hit-or-miss figure in terms of popularity, with 43% favorable and 44% negative ratings this month. The Queen Consort placed seventh in the polls, behind Edward and Sophie.
Camilla was followed by perhaps the most divisive figures in the royal family - Prince Harry, Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie, Meghan Markle, and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. The Duke of Sussex’ popularity has seemingly improved this month. With a current 33% favorable rating, his popularity has increased by six points since May 2025. His cousins, Beatrice and Eugenie, placed ninth and tenth behind him with 30% and 29% favorable ratings, respectively. Their popularity has been on rather rocky terrain ever since the discovery of their parents’ involvement in the Epstein scandal. The Duchess of Sussex finished second-last with 22% ratings in her favor, while the disgraced royal Mountbatten-Windsor unsurprisingly ended up last with 2% favorable ratings.
While the members of the royal family did fairly well in terms of favourability this month, the family as a whole also received an impressive 60% favorable rating. The institution of the monarchy in general earned a 57% rating in its favor.
