A look back at the Royal Family's Christmas cards throughout the years
Prince William and Prince Harry as babies? Adorable!
As one of the most famous families in the world – at this point, it's between them and the Kardashian-Jenners – it makes sense that the Royal Family issues an official Christmas card each year.
The tradition of releasing a portrait over the festive season (which is sent out to well-wishers, friends and fans alike) is one that dates back decades and, throughout the years, royals from Princess Diana to Kate Middleton have got involved in the festive action. But these aren't just ordinary Christmas cards. Of course, with the royals being royal, they often coordinate their outfits for their festive snaps or drop in hidden clues that have a deep meaning to them. Last year, we saw the Prince and Princess of Wales opt for an especially poignant image of their family, which was featured in the moving video of Kate sharing with the public that she is now cancer-free.
Despite stepping back as senior working royals quite some time ago, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry have also kept up the tradition of releasing an annual holiday card. And, of course, King Charles III and Queen Camilla continue the tradition, too.
So, with Christmas coming up – and to honour this heartwarming, family tradition – we took a look back at some of the royal Christmas cards of years gone by, from flashbacks of Prince William and Prince Harry as toddlers to an adorable shot of little Archie Harrison stealing the limelight from his parents.
So, grab a hot chocolate, put on your favourite Christmas playlist, and get ready for a very regal round-up...
Royal Christmas cards 2025
Meghan Markle took to Instagram to share her and Prince Harry's Christmas card this year, which includes the entire Sussex family. In the photo, a very grown-up-looking Archie and Lilibet pose with their parents in an idyllic woodland.
"Happy Holidays! From our family to yours," the Duchess of Sussex wrote in the caption.
Royal Christmas cards 2025
King Charles and Queen Camilla opted to use a holiday snap for their 2025 Christmas card. "It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!" the caption of the post on Instagram read. "The King and Queen are pleased to share this year's Christmas card, featuring a photograph taken in the grounds of Villa Wolkonsky in Rome during Their Majesties' State Visit to The Republic of Italy in April."
Royal Christmas cards 2025
Sharing a family photo taken in April 2025, the Wales family posted the photo from their Christmas card on Instagram just a week before Christmas. "Wishing everyone a very Happy Christmas," they wrote in the caption of the post which, unsurprisingly, very quickly racked up hundreds of thousands of likes.
Royal Christmas cards 2025
Princess Anne opted for a low-key and down-to-earth Christmas card for 2025, dropping her royal title and simply signing off with: "From Anne."
Royal Christmas cards 2024
The Wales family, after a brutal year which saw Kate Middleton diagnosed with and recover from cancer, opted for an especially poignant family portrait in 2024 – one that also featured in the video the Princess used to tell the public she had been given the all clear.
Royal Christmas cards 2024
Delighting fans with a rarely seen family photo, Meghan and Harry's 2024 festive greetings card featured Lilibet, 3, and Archie, 5, running into their parents' arms (cue: a tonne of comments about how grown-up and tall they've suddenly gotten, along with how striking their red hair is!).
Royal Christmas cards 2024
Leading the way in 2024 by posting theirs first, the King and Queen kept things simple with a springtime garden portrait taken by taken by Millie Pilkington in Buckingham Palace in April 2024. In an Instagram post, a picture of the card was captioned: "Christmas is coming… 🎄✨Their Majesties are pleased to share this year’s Christmas card, taken by @milliepilkingtonphotography in the Gardens of Buckingham Palace in April 2024."
Royal Christmas cards 2023
Although not officially working royals anymore, let's face it – we still want a nosey at Meghan and Harry's festive offering! In previous years, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex have opted to include their children, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet, on their card, but for 2023 they kept things strictly as a twosome.
The couple picked a photo of themselves from the closing ceremony of this year’s Invictus Games for their e-cards (an environmentally friendly choice, you'll note) and shared the message: "We wish you a very happy holiday season. Thanks for all the support in 2023!"
Royal Christmas cards 2023
Plumping for a rather regal snap taken at King Charles' Coronation Day celebrations, the King and Queen kept their 2023 message simple: "Wishing you a very Happy Christmas and New Year".
Royal Christmas cards 2023
The Prince and Princess of Wales treated fans to an off-duty family snap for 2023's festivities, and co-ordinated chic 'jeans and a nice top' outfits to boot.
Speaking about what it was like to capture the image, photographer Josh Shinner wrote on his Instagram page: "It was such a pleasure to photograph The Prince and Princess of Wales and their family for the Christmas portrait this year. Without doubt one of the most relaxed and enjoyable sittings I've ever had, and I now have a whole new set of jokes that are right on my level thanks to the children…"
Royal Christmas cards 2022
The Prince and Princess of Wales shared a family photo showing them hand-in-hand with their three children, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, for 2022 – a previously unseen image of the famous fam.
Royal Christmas cards 2022
To mark their first Christmas as King and Queen Consort in 2022, Charles and Camilla sent out this photo captured by Samir Hussein.
Royal Christmas cards 2021
Prince William and Kate Middleton's Christmas card from 2021 was taken during a family trip to Jordan and – as well as featuring the whole family – includes some cryptic royal clues.
Royal Christmas cards 2021
Just one year before he became King, Charles sent out a Christmas card that summed up life in the pandemic.
Royal Christmas cards 2020
This cosy family photo was sent out on Prince William and Kate Middleton's Christmas card back in 2020.
Royal Christmas cards 2020
In a break from tradition, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Christmas card in 2020 was a painted portrait.
Royal Christmas cards 2020
The then-Prince Charles and Camilla Parker Bowles' Christmas card in 2020 was taken in the garden at Birkhall, Scotland.
Royal Christmas cards 2019
Prince William and Kate Middleton's 2019 Christmas card was another beautiful family photo.
Royal Christmas cards 2019
And the winner for the cutest Christmas card goes to... Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, for this adorable 2019 shot featuring little Archie.
Royal Christmas cards 2019
The then-Prince Charles and Camilla showed off one of their hobbies in their 2019 Christmas card.
Cat is Cosmopolitan UK's features editor covering women's issues, health and current affairs. news, features and health. The route to her heart is a simple combination of pasta and cheese (somewhat ironic considering the whole health writing thing), and she finds it difficult to commit to TV series so currently has about 14 different ones on the go.
Jennifer Savin is Cosmopolitan UK's multiple award-winning Features Editor, who was crowned Digital Journalist of the Year for her work tackling the issues most important to young women. She regularly covers breaking news, cultural trends, health, the royals and more, using her esteemed connections to access the best experts along the way. She's grilled everyone from high-profile politicians to A-list celebrities, and has sensitively interviewed hundreds of people about their real life stories. In addition to this, Jennifer is widely known for her own undercover investigations and campaign work, which includes successfully petitioning the government for change around topics like abortion rights and image-based sexual abuse. Jennifer is also a published author, documentary consultant (helping to create BBC’s Deepfake Porn: Could You Be Next?) and a patron for Y.E.S. (a youth services charity). Alongside Cosmopolitan, Jennifer has written for The Times, Women’s Health, ELLE and numerous other publications, appeared on podcasts, and spoken on (and hosted) panels for the Women of the World Festival, the University of Manchester and more. In her spare time, Jennifer is a big fan of lipstick, leopard print and over-ordering at dinner. Follow Jennifer on Instagram, X or LinkedIn.
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