If we had to choose, we’re not sure if we’d prefer being a Disney princess or a real-life princess. While there are a lot of similarities between the two types of royal ladies, there are many more differences that make these types of princesses so different from each other. When we think about it, there are a lot of things Disney’s royal ladies are allowed to do that you’d never see a real-life princess getting the opportunity for. Perhaps this means it’s better to be an animated princess than anything else.
From not having to attend school, always ending up with a dreamy prince, and getting to have tons of fun adventures, it seems like the Disney princesses have it made. There’s very little that they aren’t allowed to do, which is why they seem to have so much fun. Real princesses, on the other hand, have a lot more restrictions that come with their royal title. They’re expected to keep up a polished image, keep up with appearances, and do nothing to tarnish their royal names. That means there are restrictions on who they can hang out with, where they can go, and who they can marry. Read on to discover whether the Disney princesses really do have it better.
15 They Get Married When They’re Teens
If you didn’t know, most of the Disney princesses are supposed to be young teens during their stories. That means many of them married their prince when they were technically underage.
With a little bit of Internet searching, it’s easy to uncover that Ariel and Mulan are only 16 while Belle is 17. Aurora, Jasmine, and Snow White are the youngest princesses, at 16, 15 and 14 respectively. Even Pocahontas, 18, Cinderella, 19, and Tiana, 19, aren’t that much older. None of these ages are super appropriate to be running off on wild adventures and getting married.
In real life, no royal princess would be married off while she is underage. Most princesses now wait to get married until their much older, like their late 20s or early 30s, which is in stark contrast to the ways of Disney princesses.
14 They Never Go To School
If you haven’t noticed, it seems that none of Disney’s royal ladies has to go to school. Princesses in the real world are of course expected to complete an education. Many of them go to the finest private schools and the most prestigious Universities, such as Oxford and Cambridge.
It would be strange if a modern day royal never sought out a higher education, even though they still have to uphold their royal responsibilities. Disney princesses, on the other hand, have all sorts of adventures that don’t involve studying. Many of them get married as teens (more on that later) and have perilous journeys to their happily ever after. Unlike modern princesses, none of their struggles involved final exams and all nighters.
13 They All Have Animal Sidekicks
All the Disney ladies have cool animal friends to act as their sidekicks. Ariel had Flounder the fish and Sebastian the crab, Mulan had Musha the Komodo Dragon, and Cinderella had her mice friends. Even Belle had the enchanted objects to act as her friends, like Chip the teacup and Lumiere the lantern. Unfortunately, a furry talking animal isn’t part of the package if you’re a princess in real life.
Real life princesses don’t have the ability to make animals their friends, or to speak to woodland creatures. Birds and mice don’t do their chores nor do they make them beautiful dresses to wear to balls. Princesses have actual human friends, just like we all do. While it would be cool if they had animal sidekicks, that’s one thing that only happens in Disney movies.
12 They Easily Run Away From Home
Disney Princesses have a tendency to run away when things get bad or they want an adventure. Ariel ran away to chase Prince Eric. Mulan ran away to join the army to take her father’s part. Snow White ran away and ended up meeting the seven Dwarves. Even Elsa ran away after all the drama went down. There’s a clear pattern here that can’t be denied.
Though Disney princesses seem to get away with this quite easily, modern day royals wouldn’t have the same ease. There are media cameras constantly on the princesses, so they’d have no privacy to escape. Even if they did manage to run away, someone with a camera phone would eventually spot them and they’d be an Internet sensation over night. It’d be hard to hide if you were a real life princess on the run.
11 They Move In With Guys They Don’t Know
Disney princesses also have a habit of moving in with guys when they don’t know them too well. Ariel did this when Prince Eric found her on the shore and brought her back to his castle. Cinderella did this when she married and moved in with a Prince she’d only spent one night dancing with. Snow White was also guilty of this when she ran away with her prince after he’d only kissed her once.
If a modern day princess moved in with a guy she didn’t know well, the media would go into a frenzy. There would be tong of judgemental articles speculating about the relationship. And we’re sure the royal family would also have something to say about it. Princesses need to keep up a good reputation, and shacking up with an almost complete stranger wouldn’t help that.
10 They Don’t Have Official Royal Duties
If you think about it, the Disney princesses never seem to have any official royal duties to fulfill. Real-life princesses are expected to make appearances at all royal events and functions - and be on their best behaviour, might we add! They’re also expected to take part in charitable projects and be a spokesperson for the royal family. That’s a lot of responsibility for one person!
Besides looking cute and getting themselves out of danger, the Disney princesses don’t have too many responsibilities. Even after they marry and live in a castle, we never hear of them having to do anything related to their royal title. In reality, being a princess is a lot more work than Disney makes it seem.
9 They Can Marry Who They Want
For the most part, Disney princesses are allowed to marry whomever they fall in love with. Mulan ended up with Li Shang after falling for him on the battle ground. Aurora fell in love with Prince Phillip when she thought he was just a regular old person. Even Pocahontas fell for John Smith, who had nothing by way of a royal title.
The guidelines are a lot stricter for real princesses. They’re not allowed to marry any random Joe off the street that they might develop feelings for. Most royal families have strict rules about who the princess can marry. The person usually has to have some royal or high blood in them. They have to be of the same religion as the royal family, and have never gotten up to any trouble. They also have to be okay with maintaining a squeaky clean public image. Not every potential prince would be okay with these rules.
8 Their Stepparents Are Always Evil
It’s like an unwritten rule of Disney that all stepparents have to be evil. Many of the Disney princesses had stepparents, and each of them proved to be cruel in their own right. Cinderella’s stepmom and stepsisters made her act as a servant in her own home. Snow White’s stepmother tried to have her killed. Even Rapunzel’s stepmother locked her away in a tower. Not cool!
The same can’t be said about real princesses’ stepparents. While some of them may be cranky and even cruel, for the most part we bet the princesses’ stepparents are just like normal stepparents. It can be hard to have a blended family, but so long as your stepparent isn’t trying to get you killed or locked away somewhere, then we think you have it pretty good.
7 They Have Fairy Godmothers Grant Them Wishes
Cinderella didn’t have to ask for a Fairy Godmother, one just appeared right before her in the nick of time. Disney princesses are lucky because they have Fairy Godmothers and other magical beings who watch out for them. They get some of their wildest dreams come true thanks to their powerful friends. Cinderella was able to go to the ball in a gorgeous gown thanks to her generous Fairy Godmother. We wish dress shopping was that easy in real life!
No actual princesses have Fairy Godmothers in the real world, which is too bad because that would have been epically cool. On the other hand, most princesses belong to very rich and powerful families, so there are seldom things that they want but can’t have. Princesses have it pretty easy compared to the rest of the population, even without any magical friends.
6 They Can Become Friends With Anyone
Disney princesses have a habit of becoming friends with literally anyone they come across. The princesses are extremely friendly and somewhat naïve, so we shouldn’t’ be surprised they becomes BFFs with literal strangers in a matter of minutes. We only wish we had their socialization skills.
But real world princesses have a bit harder time making friends. That’s because that can’t just be friends with anyone. Real princesses can’t just go hang out with their friends whenever they want; they always have to security with them, and can’t go anywhere where the paparazzi can easily spot them. They also have a spotless image to maintain, so they can’t be friends with just any random person.
It’s easier for real princesses to make friends with people who live the same lifestyle as them, for example other royals or elites. It would be hard for them to maintain a friendship with someone with a normal lifestyle, which is why they don’t have it as easy as the Disney royal ladies.
5 They Can Remove Makeup With One Hand Swipe
Remember that iconic scene in Mulan where she wipes her makeup off with one hand? Mulan literally had a full face of makeup on - foundation, concealer, eyeliner, powder, you name it. When she was upset and crying, she was able to take a single hand to wipe her face and literally remove every inch of her makeup. It seems like Disney princesses have no need for makeup remover.
Just like the rest of the world, real-life princesses aren’t so lucky. They have to turn to makeup remover or wipes to get rid of their made-up faces. We bet the princesses wear a lot of makeup since they have so many fancy, highly publicized events to attend. But even they aren’t immune from the struggle of removing water proof mascara with only a makeup wipe in hand.
4 They Go On Dangerous Adventures
During their movies, all of the Disney princesses are put through perilous adventures. While they might have not been the ones doing the dirty work, the princesses’ lives were still in danger. Mulan fought a literal war. Elsa and Anna had to save their kingdom. Even Aurora, who doesn’t do much in her fairy-tale, was in danger when she was put under Maleficent’s spell.
Real princesses would never be put in such life-threatening situations. They have tons of security and bodyguards protecting them from any threats. It’s highly unlikely to see a princess in dangerous situation, let alone fighting her own battles. While we’re all for girl power and princesses could totally save themselves if they wanted to, real princesses do receive actual threats on their life, so their security isn’t all for show. Life isn’t a fairy-tale, so if we want to keep princesses safe then they need a whole entourage of security.
3 They Always Have Perfect Hair And Makeup
No matter what kind of trouble they were getting in, the Disney princesses always manage to look good. Their hair always stays in place and their makeup never smudges. They also manage to run around in restricting dresses, which isn’t so easy in real life. All in all, the Disney princesses make looking perfect seem easy when in reality it isn’t.
No modern day princesses can look fabulous one hundred percent of the time. The media has taken dozens of shots showing famous royal ladies not looking their best. No one, not even a princess, can have a perfect outfit, hair, and makeup all of the time. We love that actual princesses are realistic, and don’t conform to the unattainable beauty standards Disney puts on their princesses.
2 They’re Always Good At Singing And Dancing
Every single Disney princess has a beautiful singing voice and killer dance moves. Rapunzel may have been locked in a tower most of her life, but she definitely knew out to belt out a tune. Cinderella was hardly more than a servant in her own house, and she sounded like a total pop diva. Even Mulan, who is known for her fighting skills, is a talented singer.
We’re sure there are some real royal ladies with a beautiful voice and dance moves, but most of them probably don’t have the skills of a Disney princess. Being a princess doesn’t mean you’re automatically doing to be a triple threat. Princesses can also be talented at other things, like sports or drawing. They don’t all need to be musical!
1 They're Loved By Literally Everyone
Aside from the villains trying to steal their kingdoms, Disney princesses are loved by almost everyone. In their movies, whenever another character would learn about the princess’ royal status, they would be ready to help them. Sometimes event he entire kingdom would come together to help the princess. It’s never hard becoming popular if you’re a Disney princess.
The same can’t be said for the princesses of the real-world. They are subjected to harsh scrutiny and criticism from both the media and the public. They can be ridiculed for something as small as the style of dress they wore on an outing. Princesses are in the public eye, and that comes with some serious drawback. All we know is that the princesses’ must have some seriously tough skin to put up with the nonsense the media says about them.