I’ve never worn much jewelry, but I admire women with jewelry collections and women who can flawlessly coordinate their jewelry with their ensembles. Since I spend so much of the day sitting at my desk, typing on my computer, I’ve always been bracelet-averse (the jangling would annoy me). Sometimes I wear rings, but I never wear earrings either. I also enjoy when men wear certain kinds of jewelry – a few well-placed rings, some bracelets, one meaningful necklace… men’s jewelry is sexy when the guy can pull it off, like when it’s Prince Harry or certain tennis players. Well, Prince William is not one of those men. He doesn’t wear any kind of jewelry – no necklaces, no bracelets and no rings. Ever. Not even a wedding ring. He neither carries nor wears any marker of his 2011 wedding whatsoever. Well, Hello Magazine decided to remind everyone of why that is.
Princess Kate’s engagement ring is one of the most iconic pieces of jewellery in history. Not only does it boast the incredible legacy of having been first owned by the late Princess Diana, but it has sparked a huge trend for sapphire jewellery ever since William popped the question in October 2010.
Following their 2011 nuptials, Kate added a gold wedding band to her ring stack. In the years since their fairytale union, however, the Prince of Wales has never sported a ring, despite his brother, Prince Harry always wearing his.
The answer is simple – the Prince of Wales does not like jewellery of any kind and that has always been the case. A month before their 2011 wedding, St. James’ Palace announced that William would not be given a ring when he and his bride exchanged vows at Westminster Abbey.
A palace insider revealed at that time to The Mirror that William’s choice was one related to personal style. “He’s not one for jewellery,” they explained. “He’s never worn any. He decided he didn’t want to wear one now. It’s all down to personal preference.”
Meanwhile, in 2018, royal commentator Eloise Parker weighed in on the debate in an interview with Marie Claire. “Although it’s traditional for royal women to wear both an engagement ring and a wedding ring after they get married, it’s never been traditional for royal men to wear one,” the royal expert said. “That’s why Prince Philip and Prince William don’t wear them. I think when you have a wedding watched by millions, everyone knows you’re married.”
Despite being married to the late Queen for over 70 years, Prince Philip never wore a wedding ring either. In comparison, William’s father King Charles does wear one – a signet ring on the little finger of his left hand… Harry is thought to have wanted a more modern look for the special piece of jewellery, choosing a sleek platinum design instead. Harry and Meghan asked court jewellers Cleave and Company to create their wedding jewellery, which the palace revealed in a statement just before the royal wedding.
I always found it interesting that Harry pretty much insisted on wearing a wedding band and that his father and brother never have. Considering William is obsessed with everything Harry does and wears, I wonder if William ever considered acquiring a wedding band after the Sussexes’ wedding? Probably not – even though William’s desire to copy Harry is strong, William’s desire to present himself as a hot and sexy single man is even stronger. It says a lot about William, actually. But I actually think it’s on-brand for William’s whole deal too – “He’s not one for jewellery. He’s never worn any.” William also hates all of the robes, religious ceremonies and flummery that come along with his position. He finds it all very “embarrassing.” He probably feels the same way about wedding rings.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
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- The Prince of Wales meets EE Rising Stars Phoebe Dynevor, Ayo Edebiri, Sophie Wilde and Mia McKenna Bruce after the Bafta Film Awards 2024, at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London.,Image: 848094471, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Jordan Pettitt / Avalon
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- The Prince of Wales meets EE Rising Stars Phoebe Dynevor, Ayo Edebiri, Sophie Wilde and Mia McKenna Bruce after the Bafta Film Awards 2024, at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London.,Image: 848094485, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Jordan Pettitt / Avalon
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- Prince William, President of BAFTA, smiles as he visits the London Screen Academy in London, Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, Pool),Image: 962844415, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: Pool, *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Kirsty Wigglesworth/Avalon/Avalon
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- Mochdre, Wales, 25 November 2025: Britain’s William, Prince William visits YouthShedz in Mochdre, Colwyn Bay, Wales.,Image: 1054570184, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Jon Super/Avalon
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- London, UK, 09 December 2025: London, UK, 09 December 2025: William, Prince of Wales, Patron of Centrepoint visits the charity’s new offices in London to mark his 20th anniversary as their Patron. Centrepoint is one of His Royal Highness’s longest Patronages, having taken over from his mother Princess Diana. Accompanied by Seyi Obakin OBE, CEO Centrepoint.,Image: 1057917981, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: *** NO UK USE FOR 48 HRS ***, Model Release: no, Credit line: Eddie Mulholland/Avalon
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- The Prince of Wales during an event co-hosted by Bafta and the Royal African Society, at Bafta, in Piccadilly, London, to celebrate young creatives and showcase the importance of supporting young people in the film, games and television industries Featuring: William, Prince of Wales Where: London, United Kingdom When: 09 Oct 2024 Credit: PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- The Prince and Princess of Wales depart a visit to Radical Weavers, a working handweaving studio and independent charity in the heart of Stirling, as part of their visit to Stirling and Falkirk Featuring: Prince William Where: Stirling, United Kingdom When: 20 Jan 2026 Credit: Cover Images **NOT AVAILABLE FOR HELLO MAGAZINE**
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- The Prince of Wales meeting with Deputy Governor of Riyadh, Prince Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Abdulaziz at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, ahead of his visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Featuring: Prince William Where: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia When: 09 Feb 2026 Credit: Aaron Chown/PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- Prince of Wales, Colonel-in-Chief of the Regiment, speaks to female members of the regiment during a visit to 1 Mercian at Bulford Camp, Wiltshire. Featuring: William, Prince of Wales – Colonel-in-Chief of the Regiment Where: Salisbury, United Kingdom When: 26 Mar 2026 Credit: Justin Tallis/PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- Prince of Wales, Colonel-in-Chief of the Regiment, speaks to female members of the regiment during a visit to 1 Mercian at Bulford Camp, Wiltshire. Featuring: William, Prince of Wales – Colonel-in-Chief of the Regiment Where: Salisbury, United Kingdom When: 26 Mar 2026 Credit: Justin Tallis/PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- The Prince of Wales at the official opening of James’ Place Birmingham, to mark Mental Health Awareness Week, and highlight the free, life-saving support the charity’s newest centre is providing to men in suicidal crisis Featuring: William, Prince of Wales Where: Birmingham, United Kingdom When: 11 May 2026 Credit: Eammon McCormack/PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
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- The Prince of Wales at the official opening of James’ Place Birmingham, to mark Mental Health Awareness Week, and highlight the free, life-saving support the charity’s newest centre is providing to men in suicidal crisis Featuring: William, Prince of Wales Where: Birmingham, United Kingdom When: 11 May 2026 Credit: Eammon McCormack/PA Images/INSTARimages **NORTH AMERICA RIGHTS ONLY**
65 Responses to “Prince William has never worn a wedding ring because ‘he’s not one for jewelry’”
No, he’s not one for Kate. Being married to her. A silent, passive-aggressive protest. I believe Harry wears his ring. HE loves his wife. Also, I just looked on Page 6 of the New York Post and the hatred and vile statements about Harry are off-putting, to say the least. Bots or William personally trashing his brother? Filled with atrocious accusions/lies.
There’s a significance, a symbol to wearing a wedding ring. Love, family, belonging. Harry understands that. William doesnt. He needs to get married, it’s not he wants to get married. He wants to show that he can do whatever he wants, because he’s gonna be king. Oh wow
Lame
Did he not try to wear bracelets after harry was wearing his?
He certainly doesn’t mind wearing a fancy-schmancy watch.
OK, a quick google search for William during his gap years shows bracelets.
Jferb —kate is a protest isnt she. Charles looked up at william sadly/thoughtfully during his wedding carriage ride.
It did look like charles wanted to tell him “you dont have to go through with this”. Wow.
I read somewhere a long time ago that it’s not unusual for English men to not wear wedding rings. Don’t know if that’s true or not.
Things may have changed but I’m in my late 40’s and growing up the men around me definitely didn’t. It may be shifting now but I was surprised when this became a story around their wedding.
I know it’s a personal choice but I’ve always been skeptical of any man who does not wear a wedding ring.
Yea it gives “hide the fact that I’m married so I can pick up side pieces more easily.” If you have a job that prevents it, that’s one thing.
But who on this planet close enough to get to him in such a scenario wouldnt know he is married!?lol
I don’t see him not wearing a ring as hiding that he’s not married, as most have said, obviously millions of people know that he’s married. I think it’s more about being a sign that they (royal men in this case) aren’t entirely committed in their marriage. I know that wearing jewelry is ones preference and not everyone enjoys wearing some or any jewelry. But I do see a coincidence in the case of royal men who have a certain proclivity for not being completely loyal in their marriages. Being adamant about not wearing a ring seems to be more of a signal that they are open to go outside of their marriages.
I am similar to Kaiser, in that I am not a fan of wearing jewelry. To me necklaces, bracelets, watches, and rings can feel almost restraining and uncomfortable. So I limit wearing them to special occasions or events and take them off immediately when I get home. I do love seeing other women and men who wear several rings or necklaces and it took me a while to adjust to wearing my engagement ring and then my wedding ring. I wear them all of the time because to me it’s a signal of love and pride to wear something that my spouse thought so much about to show his love to me, as well as a show of respect to God, who we also recited our vows to. To me one of the sexiest parts of a man is a man wearing a wedding band because it shows a love and commitment to God and to their wife. Of course, wearing a ring doesn’t ensure fidelity and respect but to most men who wear them it definitely does, at least the ones I know.
For a royal. I don’t think it signals a lack of commitment. I really don’t think they need to wear one since their marital status is obvious by the fact we know who they’re married to. Their wives become as famous as they are…and the whole point of an heir’s existence is…to be married.
Famous celebrities like Ben Affleck probably wear wedding rings and are still up to no good so I don’t think you can tell much from someone wearing it.
My father didn’t wear a wedding ring. But unlike William, he worked with his hands, professionally and as hobbies. He told me he did wear one at the start of the marriage to my mom, but he almost lost a finger when it got caught (in the 1970s, way before silicone rings) so he stopped wearing one. My mom was fine with it, and they had a happy, stable marriage until his death in 2020 (over 40 years). He was never embarrassed of his marriage or my mom, it was a safety issue with him. He was also absent minded about things like keys, etc, so taking it on and off would chance losing it. It sat in my mom’s jewelry box and now she wears it around her neck.
My brother doesn’t wear one either. He’s a surgeon and so he wouldn’t wear it during surgery (because he didnt wear it when washing hands for sanitary reasons, even with gloves over it), and I think he lost maybe 3 until finally his wife was like “you know what, whatever” lol.
So I do think there are reasons for a man to not wear a wedding ring. I mean I barely wear one since my wedding set doesnt fit anymore lol.
but with William its clear that people are asking about it because we do hear about his lack of a ring maybe once a year or so.
Wearing rings is dangerous for many activities and the safety videos warn you not to wear them.
Thing is William doesn’t have a job like that. And he could have easily gotten a ring to commemorate the event. He chose not to.
With William it’s just awkward, and the yearly updates on why he doesn’t wear a wedding ring is weird. The comment was more toward Aimee who stated she was skeptical of any man that didn’t wear a wedding ring.
You see a lot of silicone wedding bands these days. They are engineered to snap if they get caught on something. So even safety isn’t a very good excuse anymore.
My DH doesn’t wear one. He did when we were first married, but on the job and at home work using tools made it dangerous, and he was worried about losing it by taking it on and off. So now it’s in a bowl on our dresser that I use as well to store my engagement ring (which I sometimes wear and sometimes do not).
It’s also not a thing for upper class brits to wear ring, or so I’ve read. The “embarrassed” thing is quite odd, though.
yeah, my father has never worn one either, but I have zero doubts about his loyalty to my mother.
Everyone knows he’s married so it doesn’t matter much in his case whether he wears a ring or not. I guess you could say the same for any other celebrity. What, Matt Damon is married and has four daughters? Get out of town!
I would be skeptical of non-famous men who don’t wear wedding rings. But in his case it’s pretty obvious he’s married. I mean, we did all watch his wedding and we’ve all seen the replay of his dad’s two weddings on PBS ..it’s hard to fake ignorance on the marital status of a royal.
Charles wears a wedding band on his small finger under his signet.
Charles little pinky ring is that a symbol of his marriage or is it some some fancy Royal ring? Did he also wear the same with Diana?
The signet is with his crest or something like that on it. The wedding band sits just beneath it. No clue if he wore it with Diana but he does wear it now.
Exactly this. Charles’ signet ring is NOT his wedding ring, or a substitute. He wears his wedding ring on the same finger as his wedding ring, I think below it. Did Prince Philip not do the same thing? If the writer does know that Charles wears an actual wedding ring and how then the rest of the article can be dismissed.
People pointed out years ago that among royal men, young and old, William was the outlier as far as shunning wedding rings was concerned, and they are only highlighting this more when they print obvious lies to make his refusal look better.
Philip wore a signet ring that was his father’s. It was pretty much the only thing he inherited from him when he died during ww2. Except for cufflinks and watch it was the only jewelry he wore.
As a side note Philip added a secret inscription to Elizabeth’s wedding ring, that supposedly only three people knew: the engraver, Philip and Elizabeth. I wonder if it will ever be revealed. Probably not.
My father didn’t wear a ring as a safety issue because he was sometimes around machinery where he worked. Some people just are physically uncomfortable wearing a ring. But being “embarrassed” by a ring? That’s suggests someone who is emotionally stunted.
Same with my husband. He has a wedding ring and he wears it when we go out, on vacation etc. But daily use? Nope. He often works with dangerous equipment (he started out his career in factories designing conveyor belt assemblies) so it was a non-starter. With that good/legitimate a reason, why would I fight it? Unlike POW, my husband is actually happy to be married to me 😉 [26 years married this year…Honestly, I don’t wear my ring every day either. And I have just been able to fit into my engagement ring again after losing some weight – I haven’t worn it daily since before COVID lockdown]
To me, him saying that he’s “embarrassed” to wearing a wedding ring, is code for him being embarrassed by his wife! It’s clearly an insult to her as it implies that he regrets marrying her and, given how he treats her and how she puts up with him, she clearly know his feelings for her but doesn’t have enough self-respect to leave him. So, they deserve each other. The only ones I feel sorry for are the children who who have to live with two immature and perpetually feuding parents and cannot open up to anyone around them about the stress they are surrounded with.
So is a watch not considered jewelry? Because he wears one of those all the time.
I said the same thing. He’s literally wearing a watch in both of the pictures above lmaooooo. He is such a joke.
Well he does have to make certain that any engagement he attends doesn’t run longer than the allotted 45 minutes.
A watch has a functional use in telling time so I think one could put it in ambiguous category. I could see a man wanting to wear a watch for its functional purpose without wanting to wear necklaces or rings. A watch, even if it looks swanky like a Rolex, does also have a more masculine/neutral association so I could see a man gravitating towards it without necessarily being interested in other pieces of jewelry which maybe have other less functional associations.
Why do they keep bringing this up? This has been a recurring story at least three or four times in the last 2 years. If he’s not a big jewelry person, and that’s why he doesn’t wear the ring, then explaining that once should be sufficient. Constantly highlighting the fact that he doesn’t wear it, but reassuring us that it doesn’t mean anything has the opposite effect.
Exactly!! @Dee(2), why rehash a story they ran before his wedding??
Right? Who was even talking about it?
i do remember that William’s wedding vows did not include the line about being faithful – however its worded in the vows – not sure if that is standard for the CoE or not.
Probably just a broad public reminder to give a heads up to people generating WanK AI slop that wedding band on William is a glaring sign that the image is fake, as if images syrupy affection between them wasn’t a dead giveaway in itself.
One of the more foolish Three Peaks ‘happy families’ images had a ring on his hand.
They bring it up because the media knows the state of that marriage and what it was from the outset so this is poking the bear.
Also I don’t think it is accurate about Philip. I think he may have had a ring but didn’t wear it especially in later years.
At the time of the wedding they tried to claim aristo men don’t wear a ring at all. It is interesting that they now cleared up that Charles, Andrew and Edward did get wedding rings.
Yeah, it feels like poking the bear bc the explanation is just funny. He just doesn’t like jewelry. So there. Or color or fun or anything except his fave football team.
It’s interesting that the ring story was published about the time of the “George will be happy at Eton because his parents aren’t divorced” one.
You’ve hit the nail on the head – nobody was asking about this, but it’s the slow season for royal news after all and I think the rota likes to stir up their comments section a little bit and also give them some approved talking points. Thus, the previous day’s article about the Wales increased PDA and comparing them unfavourably to the Sussexes, just like this article does. It’s all just a little bit too defensive, isn’t it?
Like someone said up top its really to show Kate and possibly Carole that he got into his marriage kicking and screaming. I mean did you see the guy not even look back at his bride on his wedding. He really is a POS.
It was weird to me in 2011 and it will always be weird to me that they didn’t even have a ring for him in the ceremony. Just a straight hard pass.
I also don’t know about the “royal men have never done it” excuse. If you wanted to modernize the monarchy…
Kaiser or anyone:
Didn’t I see the royal reporters talking about William wearing a Swiftie bracelet like his kids or am I mistaken?
Of course WIlliam doesn’t wear a ring. It could be hard to track which bedside table he left it on: Rose’s or Jason’s??
Hehe
He just looks so fugly as the days go by.
So deeply unattractive! The rot on the inside has been seeping out.
It will be such visual relief whenever he finally shaves off that beard.
Neither my husband nor I wear wedding rings. We didn’t exchange them at our wedding either. I don’t like wearing rings – I have a morbid fear of them getting stuck. And my husband wasn’t concerned either way. So we just never bothered. The only thing I have in common with William! 😊
I quit wearing any rings during Covid, went back to wearing them on and off, then broke my left wrist and it took them almost an hour to cut it off as the band is thick. I still haven’t gotten the wedding band repaired, much to my husband’s despair, so he bought me an adjustable diamond ring (since my fingers still swell). Now my husband hasn’t taken his ring off since we wed 28 years ago and is rather proud of that. I’m finding that as I get older, it just doesn’t mean as much and really isn’t tied to the state of our marriage.
Ring or no ring every time I see wank face , I think horses ass.
There are men’s wedding bands now that are very unobtrusive. Properly fitted, William would quickly be unaware of it. But I’ve never believed the “I don’t wear jewelry” excuse. A ginourmous Rolex watch which he’s never seen without, is, in fact, jewelry.
William is so much not one for Jewellery that it appears he doesn’t buy any for Kate either, according to News articles.
I like a. man who can wear jewelry well. It’s hot. Plus a lot of male cells wear jewelry bc it’s about brand deals that get them money. So most are going o bc the acting gigs don’t always pay that much. Men wear Bulgari and Tiffany’s. So idk, the reason comes off as antiquated to me. I just don’t like jewelry. Okaaaay. Well, fair enough. There’s lots of reasons to not wear jewelry as many commenters have noted. And some people truly just don’t like and that’s fine too. But I mean he could rock some uk brand jewelry, a cool necklace or something. Help the economy, lol.
‘Fairytale union…’ Right. My late lovely dad never wore a ring, and many of his generation – Prince Philip’s – didn’t. It’s different today though. Exchanging rings at the service is symbolic, even if you don’t consistently wear it afterwards.
I’m with you on the symbolic exchange of rings. My late beloved father, as I said above, didn’t wear a ring for safety reasons. But Mom and Dad did exchange at the altar.
I’m not bothered if William doesn’t want to wear a wedding ring and doesn’t find it to be meaningful. Fair enough, I’m not one for jewelry either. But, if my partner was someone like Kate who obviously cares a great deal about jewelry and uses it to mark special occasions or milestones (not just her engagement and wedding but anniversaries, the birth of her children etc)? If my spouse cared a great deal about it ( as I suspect Kate does) I might choose to wear something, just as a way of marking my love and respect for them. I think that’s the crux of it, though – this whole article is just about what William wants, there’s not even a thought about what his wife’s opinion might be.
I always got the impression that he didn’t wear a ring because people would obsess over its whereabouts if/when the marriage started to crumble.
(I’ll always have an ounce of sympathy for him since having a front row seat to his parents’ disaster of a marriage messed him UP.)
I have no sympathy for him, because he’s a nasty son of a bitch who ruthlessly destroys others to mask his own mediocrity and idleness—and who has such terrible deeds on his conscience that our “eyes would bleed” if we found out about them. A traitor, a venal scoundrel, a man with no honor or backbone. What is there to pity about him? Harry had the same parents and isn’t a pig like that; he’s a decent man.
I knew a couple, both artists, who had their “rings” tattooed. Now that’s commitment.
Meh, I don’t wear my wedding rings because I don’t like the feeling of metal constricting my fingers. Especially when doing any kind of housework. Plus I am fidgety, I mess with them too much and then leave them in places where I can’t find them easily. I put them in a safe place and wear them on special occasions.
He does wear jewelry—he wears a watch. It’s purely decorative, since his smart phone covers all its functions.
And not bothered about working much and helping promote his patronages or undertake frequent foreign trips to promote UK interests.
This post shows up on my screen beside the one with Tom Brady. Although they’re approximately the same age, Brady looks significantly younger.
So, according to these people, wildly expensive watches worth tens of thousands of dollars don’t count as jewelry for William but they do for Meghan. Got it.
Kazstanka, you just wrote a perfect summary of William, a short book that he himself would never read. Brava. You write beautifully.
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