Kate Middleton is officially the most popular fashion influencer

(Image credit: 2020 Samir Hussein)

It is official: Kate Middleton isn't just the most stylish royal, she's the most popular fashion influencer in the UK, above celebrities such as Holly Willoughby.

This is the second year in a row that she's snagged the top spot, overtaking another royal, Meghan Markle, who had caused searches for her style to increase by 219% after her engagement to Prince Harry.

According to date combined by LoveTheSales.com, it was Kate Middleton's dresses which helped her overtake other celebs, no small feat given the very few royal engagements this year due to the pandemic.

The purple floral Faithfull the Brand frock she wore this summer to visit Children's Hospice The Nook in Framlingham Earl, Norfolk, was especially popular, driving 112% more searches for it.

Other fashion searches linked to her style included Broderie Anglaise shirts, scalloped cardigans and checkered overcoats, in reference to her Zoom outfits as well as her royal tour wardrobe in December.

But fear not, the Duchess of Sussex wasn't too far behind, placing at a reasonable third place for style influence, behind Kate and This Morning host Holly Willoughby.

Fans particularly loved Meghan's more casual vibes this year, searching for utility trousers, chambray shirts, utility shorts and linen dresses.

Penny Goldstone

Penny Goldstone is the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire, covering everything from catwalk trends to royal fashion and the latest high street and Instagram must-haves.

Penny grew up in France and studied languages and law at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris before moving to the UK for her MA in multimedia journalism at Bournemouth University. She moved to the UK permanently and has never looked back (though she does go back regularly to stock up on cheese and wine).

Although she's always loved fashion - she used to create scrapbooks of her favourite trends and looks, including Sienna Miller and Kate Moss' boho phase - her first job was at MoneySavingExpert.com, sourcing the best deals for everything from restaurants to designer sales.

However she quit after two years to follow her true passion, fashion journalism, and after many years of internships and freelance stints at magazines including Red, Cosmopolitan, Stylist and Good Housekeeping, landed her dream job as the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK.

Her favourite part of the job is discovering new brands and meeting designers, and travelling the world to attend events and fashion shows. Seeing her first Chanel runway IRL at Paris Fashion Week was a true pinch-me moment.