Prince Harry and Meghan Markle may live behind the gates of a California mansion, but insiders claim the royal runaway dream is starting to crack.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are allegedly facing a brutal money squeeze as their Hollywood gold rush fades, their bills keep exploding and the royal family drama that once made them millions is no longer paying like it used to.

Now Meghan, 44, is said to be under enormous pressure to keep the couple’s lavish lifestyle alive.

The former Suits actress has spoken openly about the fear of never having enough money. During the finale of her Confessions of a Female Founder podcast, Meghan sat down with Spanx billionaire Sara Blakely and admitted many women struggle with guilt and anxiety around wealth.

“I think so many women, especially, we’re taught to not even talk about money, and there’s lots of guilt mentality surrounding having a lot,” Meghan said.

She added that there can also be a “scarcity mindset” of fearing, “I’ll never have enough.”

According to insiders, that fear may now be more real than ever inside the couple’s nine-bedroom, 16-bathroom Montecito mansion.

Harry, 41, and Meghan share the sprawling California estate with Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, who turns 5 next year. The couple bought the property in 2020 for a reported $14.65 million after quitting royal life and fleeing to America.

But the price of freedom has been staggering.

A source told RadarOnline.com the Sussexes need at least $6 million a year just to break even. Their massive costs reportedly include security, mortgage payments, staff, travel, upkeep and legal bills.

“Harry and Meghan are watching every dollar right now,” the insider claimed. “Their cash flow, or lack of it, is a major concern and it’s been that way for a while.”

The source added, “They may be multimillionaires with savings they’ve tucked away for emergencies, but their outgoings are absolutely huge.”

The biggest problem, sources claim, is that Harry and Meghan’s most explosive payday may already be over.

When they first left the royal family, the world wanted every dirty detail. Netflix wanted them. Spotify wanted them. Publishers wanted them. Viewers could not get enough of the royal feud.

But now the bombshells have been dropped, the interviews have aired and Harry’s memoir Spare has already spilled the family secrets that shocked the world.

The Sussex brand is no longer the guaranteed money machine it once looked like.

Spotify cut ties with the couple in 2023. Their massive Netflix deal was later replaced with a less lucrative arrangement. Meghan’s new lifestyle empire, As Ever, is now carrying much of the weight as she tries to turn duchess fame into business cash.

According to the insider, Meghan has become the real breadwinner.

“Meghan is effectively the family breadwinner,” the source claimed. “She’s working her socks off on her As Ever brand and other business ventures — that’s providing the bulk of their earnings.”

Harry, meanwhile, is said to be focused on causes like the Invictus Games, mental health advocacy and philanthropy. Those projects may be meaningful, but insiders say they do not pay the bills.

“Harry’s way more focused on philanthropy and nobody would deny that it’s what he does best,” the source said. “But that doesn’t pay the bills and it’s asking an awful lot of Meghan to keep propping them up for the foreseeable future.”

Harry has earned big money before. His memoir reportedly brought in a massive payday, and he joined mental health startup BetterUp in 2021. But the prince’s best-paying era appears to have come from exposing the royal rupture that tore his family apart.

That kind of cash cow cannot last forever.

NewsNation recently reported Harry’s speaking fee has fallen from around $1 million in 2020 to about $50,000 per event today.

Harry also has inherited wealth from Princess Diana and the Queen Mother, but sources claim he does not want to burn through the money left to him by his family.

“He’d love to make more but he’s hampered by the fact that he’s in Hollywood and not really in the same league as Meghan when it comes to business,” the insider said. “And he’s loath to dip into his inheritance.”

That leaves Meghan fighting to keep the Sussex machine running.

The former actress has been pushing hard to reinvent herself as a lifestyle mogul, investor, producer, podcast host and influencer. Her As Ever brand has become the center of her latest comeback attempt.

She has also tied herself to wellness, fashion and beauty companies including Clevr Blends, Cesta Collective, Highbrow Hippie, Midi Health and OneOff.

Meghan has also built a powerful circle of wealthy women and celebrity business players, including Lauren Sanchez Bezos and IT Cosmetics founder Jamie Kern Lima.

To fans, Meghan is a hard-working entrepreneur building an empire from scratch.

To critics, she looks like a duchess desperately leaning on billionaire-adjacent friends, private-plane circles and Hollywood favors to keep up appearances.

And insiders say Harry is uncomfortable watching it unfold.

“Harry admires Meghan’s work ethic and determination, but seeing her hustle for money like this does make him cringe,” the source claimed.

The insider added, “It’s no secret he’s been feeling uneasy about the materialistic, superficial nature of Hollywood for some time now and seeing his wife at the center of it can be hard.”

Meghan has even started stepping back toward acting and television.

She reportedly filmed a cameo for the upcoming Amazon MGM Studios rom-com Close Personal Friends and shot a guest-judging spot on MasterChef Australia during the Sussexes’ trip Down Under.

“There’s a lot of buzz that Meghan’s pushing for roles, which would help with some of the bills, of course,” the source claimed. “But it wouldn’t be her ideal scenario, and no doubt it would appall the royal family as well.”

The timing could hardly be worse.

Harry has reportedly been trying to thaw his icy relationship with King Charles and rebuild goodwill with the royals ahead of the 2027 Invictus Games in England. But Meghan’s increasingly commercial reinvention may only deepen fears inside palace walls that the Sussexes are still cashing in on their royal titles.

And despite all the alleged tension, insiders say walking away from each other may not be an option.

A divorce could be financially devastating. It could also expose the money troubles they have tried to hide behind their polished public image.

“Harry and Meghan are definitely worth a whole lot more together than apart,” the source claimed. “So for the time being, it appears they’re stuck with each other, whether they like it or not.”

For now, the Sussexes may still have the mansion, the titles and the celebrity friends.

But insiders claim the money machine that once powered their royal rebellion is sputtering — and Meghan may be the one left scrambling to keep the whole empire from crashing down.