Despite having a multimillion-pound fortune, including hundreds of millions of earnings from the Duchy of Lancaster – the private estate made up of 45,550 acres of land and properties – the Queen is super-thrifty. Perhaps it was growing up during the Great Depression and World War II that left her with a "make do and mend" attitude that she has passed down to the rest of the royal family. Whether it's taking the train, rewearing an outfit or turning off the central heating, click or scroll through how Her Majesty and her family prove that it's possible to be frugal while living like royalty.

The Queen's thriftiness is in line with that of her father, George VI (pictured left), who became king just three years before the outbreak of World War II. The king, who remained at Buckingham Palace throughout, had black lines painted into the royal baths so no-one could use more than their allocated five inches of hot water, in a bid to support the war effort.

When the Queen married Prince Philip in 1947, rationing was still in place. So the then-Princess Elizabeth used clothing ration coupons to pay for her wedding dress, designed by Sir Norman Hartnell. Hundreds of people from across the country apparently sent in their own coupons to help with her outfit, but they had to be returned as it would have been illegal to use them. 

The Queen has always looked for ways to save money, even when her own children were young. So when Edward, her fourth child, came along he was made to play with the same toys as his older siblings Charles, Anne and Andrew. He was also made to sleep in the same cream-coloured cot that his brothers and sister had used, according to newspaper sources.

The Queen's favourite summer retreat is Balmoral Castle in the Scottish Highlands. The castle was built in 1856 and is privately owned by the royal family, unlike Buckingham Palace, and any damage to the walls is patched up with wallpaper left over from Queen Victoria's era. After all, why spend more money on wallpaper when you've got some bought by your great-great-grandma?

The late Queen Mother also spent her summer holidays in the Scottish Highlands, at the Castle of Mey in Caithness. She bought the near-derelict castle in 1952 to convert it into a holiday home, connecting it to mains water and electricity for the first time. The Queen Mother used to rent a TV and video recorder during the months she stayed, although an aide described the latter as a "poison chalice" as it often failed to record the horse racing.

Buckingham Palace has some 40,000 light bulbs which, in 2011, made for a somewhat hefty electricity bill of £2.2 million ($2.78m). Signs put up around the building that year warned: “The attention is drawn of all members of staff to the need to switch off unwanted lights. By Order of The Master of The Household.” The Queen was known to walk through the palace turning them off herself.

While a decadent dish like eggs royale may appear a more fitting breakfast for any monarch, the Queen herself prefers a simple bowl of cereal or porridge oats. Ever thrifty, she also demands that these are kept in airtight plastic containers to make them last longer. And in 2012, a former royal chef revealed she once sent back a lemon used as a garnish, saying the kitchen could use it again.

Despite her sons being heir to the throne, Princess Diana always wanted William and Harry to have as normal a life as possible while they were growing up. One of their most important weekend rituals as children was popping out to McDonald's for a Big Mac and fries on a Saturday night, according to her former butler Paul Burrell. They'd then head home and watch TV dating show Blind Date. 

Home cooking is always more economical than eating out and some members of the royal family are said to be keen cooks. Kate, Duchess of Cambridge, was regularly spotted in the local supermarket when she and Prince William (pictured helping out in a kitchen) lived in Wales and Prince Philip was sometimes seen barbecuing in Balmoral. Prince Harry even proposed to Meghan while roasting a chicken during a cosy night in at their cottage.

While Kate is often praised for recycling outfits, it's worth noting that her grandmother-in-law has been doing it for decades. The Queen even recycled the Angela Kelly crepe wool primrose dress she wore to William and Kate's wedding during a visit to Australia some six months later – particularly impressive if you consider it was 30ºC (86ºF) in Canberra.

The Queen's style was dubbed "credit crunch couture" when it was announced she would be wearing a dress made from decades-old fabric for a state banquet in Slovenia during the 2008 financial crisis. The gold, silver and grey brocade was given to the Queen during a Middle Eastern tour and had been in storage for more than 20 years prior to being made into a formal evening gown.

It may come as a bit of a surprise for commuters, but the Queen is known for travelling by train when she heads to and from the Sandringham Estate for Christmas. In 2017's festive season, she caught the regular train from London King's Cross to King's Lynn in December, then travelled back again in early February. Assuming she had a Senior Railcard, her ticket would have cost a mere £39 ($49). 

The Queen is also thrifty when it comes to Christmas presents. After gifts are opened on 24 December, in line with the family's German roots, she carefully collects up the leftover wrapping paper and ribbons to save for another year, according to biographer Kate Williams. Parcel string is also saved to be used again. 

Tradition dictates that all members of staff at each royal residence receives a Christmas pudding every year – but in 2017 upmarket Harrods was shunned for supermarket Tesco. A £8 ($10) Christmas pudding was distributed to staff, alongside a card from the Queen and Prince Philip thanking them for their service, according to a British newspaper.

Perhaps unsurprisingly for a family which has everything, the royals tend to resort to jokey Christmas gifts. The Queen likes a giggle and Meghan is rumoured to have given her a singing hamster, which was a massive hit with her pet corgis. And Charles's favourite-ever gift was reportedly a white leather toilet seat from his sister Anne.

You'd think he had a new suit for each occasion, but it turns out that Prince Charles is as happy to 'make do and mend' as his mother. Apparently his tailors Anderson & Sheppard keep a box of leftover material for every item they've made him. The grey suit he wore to Harry and Meghan's wedding (pictured) is thought to date back to 1984.

Both Kate and Meghan are used to being dressed by high-end designers, but they are also known for championing everyday brands. Kate is known to be a particular fan of Zara clothing like this £40 ($50) stripy summer dress (pictured), which she wore to a charity polo match in Gloucestershire in summer 2018. She was even said to have worn a floral dress made by the brand to her sister's wedding reception in 2017.

Kate famously did her own make-up for her wedding, although she did take some lessons from a pro first. Make-up artist Arabella Preston reportedly made several trips to Clarence House ahead of the wedding, so the Duchess of Cambridge was confident enough to do it herself for the big day. She was also rumoured to have disliked the make-up for her official engagement shoot, eventually rubbing it off and doing it herself.

The Queen may not generally fly on commercial airlines but her grandchildren do, particularly for personal visits. The royal family are entitled to a private jet if travelling on state business but otherwise need to use regular airlines like the rest of us. Princes William and Harry were even spotted flying on budget airline Flybe after attending their cousin Zara's wedding in Edinburgh.

Princess Anne is perhaps even more frugal than the rest of the royal family, with one UK newspaper reporting she owned clothes that were older than her children. This particular dress, sported at Royal Ascot in 2014, was first worn to the same event in 1988, seen at a wedding in 1992, worn again at Ascot in 1994 and then wheeled out for a VE Day commemoration in 1995.

Back in 2010, Prince Charles started to host drinks parties instead of lavish dinners in an attempt to cut back on entertaining. His private secretary Michael Peat said that the royal household was "always keeping an eye on the economic climate", adding: "We do live in the real world – for the most part anyhow." And it worked. In the 2009/10 fiscal year, Charles's entertaining bill dropped from about £800,000 ($1m) to £380k ($480k) despite hosting 9,400 people at his residence Clarence House. 

Meghan made her public debut as Harry's girlfriend at the 2017 Invictus Games in Toronto and later upped her down-to-earth credentials by being spotted with what appeared to be a takeaway. The one-time actress was photographed getting out of a car carrying a plastic bag full of leftovers the following day, although one newspaper noted that she was wearing a $495 (£390) pair of pointy-toe Sarah Flint pumps at the time.

Eagle-eyed royal watchers were quick to spot that the red patent shoes that Princess Charlotte wore during 2017's official visit to Poland once belonged to her uncle. Prince Harry was first spotted wearing them in 1986, in photos taken while he was playing in the garden of Highgrove House and in a portrait taken at Kensington Palace.

Prince George has also been dressed in some of the outfits his father wore as a child. He watched the 2016 Trooping the Colour flypast wearing the same outfit William wore to his brother Harry's christening in 1984. It came a year after George made his palace balcony debut wearing the same blue romper suit his father wore for Her Majesty's Birthday Parade flypast, also in 1984.

Buckingham Palace is notoriously draughty but the frugal Queen is apparently not too keen on a central heating system. So instead she plumps for a small student-style electric heater to provide her guests with a warm welcome. Look closely and you can spot it in the fireplace when she met Mohammed bin Salman, the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, during a private audience. 

When Prince Louis was christened in 2018, he was wearing a replica of the royal christening gown, which was in danger of falling apart. The original was commissioned by Queen Victoria for the birth of her first child, Princess Victoria, in 1841. But after being worn by 62 royal babies over the years, the Queen commissioned her senior dresser Angela Kelly to make an exact replica in 2008. James, Viscount Severn, was the first to wear the new one and all royal babies have done so since.

Princess Anne's famed frugality also extends to her travels. The Princess Royal once turned down a room with a sea view at a hotel on the Scottish island of Oban in order to save £40 ($50). Her thriftiness has rubbed off on her husband Sir Tim Laurence too. Back in 2013 he popped into a pub in the East Yorkshire seaside town of Bridlington for fish and chips and the entire bill, for 10 people and including drinks, came to a mere £50 ($65) in total.

Despite once having a bit of reputation for being a party animal, Harry is not the reveller people think he is, according to biographer Duncan Larcombe. Larcombe followed the prince in his 12 years as The Sun newspaper's royal editor and said that Harry, like the rest of the royal family, was very frugal. Harry was more likely to have a quiet pint in the pub rather than standing on a table swilling champagne, he added. 

Sophie, Countess of Wessex, was spotted putting just a £2 ($2.55) bet on four different horses on the second day of 2018's Royal Ascot event. The low wager was probably a good thing as none of her horses crossed the finish line in first place. But it clearly didn't ruin her day, and she looked like she was enjoying herself throughout. 

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