While Prince Harry of the U.K. may not be first in line to the throne, he is the first in the U.S.'s wedding ratings. The ratings for the royal wedding are in and they reveal around 29 million people tuned into watch Prince Harry and Meghan Markle tie the knot. Those numbers easily outpace the 22.8 million U.S. viewers that watched Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding in 2011. In other words, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding was watched by approximately 6.2 million more people. And that's not the only notable royal wedding statistic.
Along with the ratings comparison between the princes, CNN reveals that more viewers in the U.S. tuned in to watch Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's wedding than in the United Kingdom. The couple's royal wedding was watched by 18 million in the U.K. versus the 29.2 million it averaged in the United States. That means 11 million more people tuned into watch the wedding in the U.S.
While Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's royal wedding beat out Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding viewership in the U.S., more watched the latter couple's nuptials in the United Kingdom. Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding was viewed by six million more people in the U.K. The couple's 2011 wedding was watched by 24 million people in the U.K., where 18 million watched Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's.
No matter the ratings, both couples had lovely ceremonies that drew masses to watch. On Saturday, Prince Harry married Meghan Markle in a beautiful ceremony attended by family and friends. Among those on hand were Prince William, his wife, and two of their three children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, who were part of the ceremony.
One thing both weddings share in common is a lot of public interest and the ratings clearly indicate that all of the pre-wedding excitement lived up to the hype. It is rare for a non-sports event to garner ratings beyond the 20 million mark. So for the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle -- the now Duchess of Sussex -- to nearly hit the 30 million viewership mark is a very big deal.
While that number is high, it only accounts for the people who were watching on their TV. Even more streamed the royal wedding online, meaning an untold number caught the ceremony elsewhere. That number could bring the grand total even higher, distancing itself even further from the number that watched Prince William and Kate Middleton's wedding seven years ago when streaming was less of a thing.
In a telling show of how high interest was in the ceremony of the internationally beloved couple, people had to wake up at 7 a.m. ET on a Saturday to watch it live. That is remarkable. Many people do not get up that early to let the cable repair person in so that they can watch television trouble-free! For more exciting television, minus the larger than life royal wedding, check out our guide to TV's summer premieres.
