Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle and Prince Harry need no introduction to fans of pop culture and the royal family. On Jan. 8, 2020, Meghan and Harry announced they would step down as senior working members of the royal family. They gave up official duties, military appointments, and HRH titles.
“We intend to step back as ‘senior’ members of the royal family and work to become financially independent, while continuing to support Her Majesty the Queen fully,” they said in a lengthy statement.
While the couple’s widely covered Megxit phenomenon gained great momentum when it happened, as of 2026, the former Suits actor has lost much of the status and privileges of royal life. Still, one advantage the 44-year-old mother of two enjoys is not shared by other royal members like Prince William and Kate Middleton.
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According to The List, as a private citizen, Meghan Markle can choose how much of her children’s lives are shared with the public. This applies to both Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet. The British royal family is highly watched. As a result, its members are constantly photographed, receive many gifts, and live under certain non-negotiable duties.
Meghan Markle and Harry’s son Archie was photographed several times while the couple was still official family members. One notable occasion was a 2019 visit to South Africa, where they met Archbishop Desmond Tutu. In 2022, during the Platinum Jubilee celebrations in London, the couple also shared a photo of Lilibet on her first birthday.
Things have changed in Markle’s favor since they split time between the U.K. and the U.S. They live in Montecito, a popular area in Santa Barbara County, California, where they bought a home in 2020, according to Vanity Fair. Since leaving official duties, Markle deleted her social media accounts. Furthermore, the official Duke and Duchess of Sussex account has been inactive since 2020.
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The mother of two returned to social media with a new Instagram account, Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, on Jan. 1, 2025. There, Archie and Lilibet’s faces are often omitted in her posts. The last full-body image of the siblings was in the 2021 holiday cards. Their red hair likely comes from Prince Harry. Their facial features remain mostly private from the public eye.
In comparison, Kate Middleton and Prince William’s three children — Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis — are often out in public. They are frequently captured smiling at the paparazzi during important royal events. Yet, Prince William revealed in a November 2025 interview with Brazilian media that none of his three children has a cell phone. The future king wants his kids to enjoy life naturally, without getting glued to screens and gadgets.
As William and Kate continue to represent a more modern version of monarchy as the next king and queen of England, marked by honors and public admiration. Meghan and Harry retain the personal choice to keep their children largely out of the public eye and focus on their next professional commitments.
