The jaw-dropping sum Prince Harry got paid for writing memoir Spare | Royal | News

Bestselling author Richard Osman (author of hit crime novels including Thursday Murder Club) has previously used his own knowledge of the industry to estimate how much he believes Harry was paid.

Speaking previously on his podcast The Rest Is Entertainment, Osman said: “It is impossible to overstate how much money the book Harry wrote made.

“So, it became one of the most successful books. The fastest-selling nonfiction book of all time. I did some background calculations because I loved it.

“I know how much you get paid per book. You got a $20 million advance. The thing about the advance is you get paid upfront, $20 million, so you don’t make a dime until your publisher gets their $20 million back.”

“And when they make their $20 million back, and how that works, there are all kinds of sliding scales of what they get, what you get, once you make the $20 million, you get your royalties.”

Rating his knowledge, he added: “I think – and his book hasn’t come out in paperback yet. So it’s a full hardback book. I’d estimate it made $26-27 million.”

The paperback version of Spare was officially released in October 2024, 21 months after the original hardcover edition.