- Royal Ascot prize money sees £10.65m on offer in 2026
- What are the most valuable 2026 Royal Ascot races?
- See how the Royal Ascot prize money has changed over the years
The biggest flat meeting of the season will once again be Britain’s richest race meeting in 2026, with a record total Royal Ascot prize fund of £10.65 million spread across the 35 races run over the famous five-day festival from June 16-20.
Royal Ascot Prize Money Up From 2025
The increase represents a significant rise from the £10.05 million on offer in 2025 and underlines Ascot’s commitment to maintaining Royal Ascot as one of the premier racing events in the world.
The meeting features two £1 million contests – the Prince of Wales’s Stakes on Wednesday and the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes on Saturday – while several other Group 1 races, including the Queen Anne Stakes, St James’s Palace Stakes, Commonwealth Cup, Coronation Stakes and Gold Cup, boast prize funds ranging from £650,000 to £750,000.
Overall Royal Ascot Prize Money £19.4m for 2026
Ascot Racecourse announced that Royal Ascot’s prize money increase forms part of a wider investment programme that will see overall prize money across the Berkshire track reach a record £19.4 million in 2026.
The Royal Meeting alone accounts for more than half of that total and continues to attract the world’s leading owners, trainers and jockeys chasing some of the most lucrative purses in European racing.
Nick Smith, Director of Racing and Public Affairs at Ascot Racecourse, said: “Prize money is the most important investment tool that we have in attracting horses to run from home and abroad, at all levels of racing that we stage.
“We saw some world-class racing at Ascot in 2025, with runners travelling here from four continents. It is vital in an increasingly competitive international market that we keep Ascot at the forefront and the Royal Meeting is key to this.”
Royal Ascot Prize Money For EVERY Race in 2026
Royal Ascot Tuesday 16th June 2026
| Time | Race | Class | Distance | TV | Total Prize Money |
| 2:30pm | Queen Anne Stakes | Group 1 | 1m (straight) | ITV / Sky | £800,000 |
| 3:05pm | Coventry Stakes | Group 2 | 6f | ITV / Sky | £200,000 |
| 3:40pm | King Charles III Stakes | Group 1 | 5f | ITV / Sky | £700,000 |
| 4:20pm | St James’s Palace Stakes | Group 1 | 1m (round) | ITV / Sky | £700,000 |
| 5:00pm | Ascot Stakes | Handicap | 2m 4f | ITV / Sky | £120,000 |
| 5:35pm | Wolferton Stakes | Listed | 1m2f | ITV / Sky | £125,000 |
| 6:10pm | Copper Horse Stakes | Handicap | 1m6f | ITV4 / Sky | £120,000 |
WATCH: Field Of Gold Winning The 2025 St James’s Palace Stakes
Royal Ascot Wednesday 17th June 2026
| Time | Race | Class | Distance | TV | Total Prize Money |
| 2:30pm | Queen Mary Stakes | Group 2 | 5f | ITV / Sky | £175,000 |
| 3:05pm | Queen’s Vase | Group 2 | 1m6f | ITV / Sky | £265,000 |
| 3:40pm | Duke of Cambridge Stakes | Group 2 | 1m (round) | ITV / Sky | £250,000 |
| 4:20pm | Prince of Wales’s Stakes | Group 1 | 1m 2f | ITV / Sky | £1,000,000 |
| 5:00pm | Royal Hunt Cup | Handicap | 1m (straight) | ITV / Sky | £175,000 |
| 5:35pm | Kensington Palace Stakes | Handicap | 1m (straight) | ITV / Sky | £120,000 |
| 6:10pm | Windsor Castle Stakes | Listed | 6f | ITV4 / Sky | £125,000 |
WATCH: True Love Winning The Queen Mary Stakes in 2025
Royal Ascot Thursday 18th June 2026
| Time | Race | Class | Distance | TV | Total Prize Money |
| 2:30pm | Chesham Stakes | Listed | 7f | ITV / Sky | £125,000 |
| 3:05pm | King George V Stakes | Handicap | 1m4f | ITV / Sky | £120,000 |
| 3:40pm | Ribblesdale Stakes | Group 2 | 1m4f | ITV / Sky | £250,000 |
| 4:20pm | Gold Cup | Group 1 | 2m4f | ITV / Sky | £700,000 |
| 5:00pm | Britannia Stakes | Handicap | 1m (straight) | ITV / Sky | £130,000 |
| 5:35pm | Hampton Court Stakes | Group 3 | 1m2f | ITV / Sky | £175,000 |
| 6:10pm | Buckingham Palace Stakes | Handicap | 7f | ITV4 / Sky | £120,000 |
WATCH: Trawlerman Winning The 2025 Ascot Gold Cup
Royal Ascot Friday 19th June 2026
| Time | Race | Class | Distance | TV | Total Prize Money |
| 2:30pm | Albany Stakes | Group 3 | 6f | ITV / Sky | £125,000 |
| 3:05pm | Commonwealth Cup | Group 1 | 6f | ITV / Sky | £700,000 |
| 3:40pm | Duke of Edinburgh Stakes | Handicap | 1m4f | ITV / Sky | £120,000 |
| 4:20pm | Coronation Stakes | Group 1 | 1m (round) | ITV / Sky | £700,000 |
| 5:00pm | Sandringham Stakes | Handicap | 1m (straight) | ITV / Sky | £120,000 |
| 5:35pm | King Edward VII Stakes | Group 2 | 1m 4f | ITV / Sky | £250,000 |
| 6:10pm | Palace of Holyroodhouse Stakes | Handicap | 5f | ITV4 / Sky | £120,000 |
WATCH: Cercene Winning The 2025 Coronation Stakes
Royal Ascot Saturday 20th June 2026
| Time | Race | Class | Distance | TV | Total Prize Money |
| 2:30pm | Norfolk Stakes | Group 2 | 5f | ITV / Sky | £175,000 |
| 3:05pm | Hardwicke Stakes | Group 2 | 1m4f | ITV / Sky | £250,000 |
| 3:40pm | Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes | Group 1 | 6f | ITV / Sky | £1,000,000 |
| 4:20pm | Jersey Stakes | Group 3 | 7f | ITV / Sky | £175,000 |
| 5:00pm | Wokingham Stakes | Handicap | 6f | ITV / Sky | £175,000 |
| 5:35pm | Golden Gates Stakes | Handicap | 1m2f | ITV / Sky | £120,000 |
| 6:10pm | Queen Alexandra Stakes | Conditions | 2m6f | ITV4 / Sky | £120,000 |
WATCH: Lazzat Winning The 2025 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes
Prince Of Wales’s Stakes and QEII Jubilee Stakes The Most Valuable Royal Ascot Races in 2026
The richest Royal Ascot races in 2026 are the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes and the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes – with both contests worth over £1m.
With the winner of the ITV Racing contest will bank a cool £567,100 of that prize fund, and this year’s Prince Of Wales’s Stakes on Wednesday race looks a cracker.
As last year’s winner Ombudsman is back for more taking on last season’s Arc winner Daryz from France.
WATCH: Ombudsman Winning The 2025 Prince Of Wales’s Stakes
Royal Ascot Prize Money History
See how the total Royal Ascot prize money has changed over the years.
- 2026 – £10,645,000
- 2025 – £10,050,000
- 2024 – £10,050,000
- 2023 – £9,520,000
- 2022 – £8,652,500
- 2021 – £6,000,000
- 2020 – £3,610,000
- 2019 – £7,330,000
- 2018 – £7,305,000
- 2017 – £6.600,000
- 2016 – £6,580,000
- 2015 – £6,580,000
- 2014 – £5,310,000
