Disney Princesses – Official and Unofficial Disney Princesses Listed

When you hear the words “Disney Princess”, who comes to mind? Do you know that there’s an official list of Disney Princesses? Perhaps the characters that came to mind for you aren't on that list. As it currently stands, there are only 13 female characters that are in the official lineup. Disney has a LOT of strong female characters. What does a princess need to qualify for a ranking on the official list?

Contrary to the word princess, not all of the characters on the list are royal. At the same time, not all royals are on the list. There are three ways that a character can be added to the official list: being a princess by birth, marrying a prince, or completing a heroic act. This still leaves us to wonder why more ladies aren’t on the list. Disney has no shortage of strong female characters and heroines.

We’re going to first take a look at the official Disney Princess list. Then we’re going to take a look at other leading ladies that are what we’re going to call “unofficial Disney Princesses”. To narrow things down a bit, I’m going to categorize the list based on how these characters came to be Disney Princesses based off of the official Disney Princess requirements: to be born a princess, to marry a prince, or to have completed a heroic act.

Disney Princess by Birth

These official Disney Princesses are all ones who were born into royal families. While most are daughters of kings, there are a few that are daughters of chiefs. All of these princesses have equally ranking statuses among their kingdoms, villages, and tribes.

• Snow White – Starting off strong, we have Snow White. She is the very first Disney Princess. She was also in the first-ever full-length animated film put out by Disney. She was born to the King (who is unnamed) in the 1937 film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which gives her the title of princess. At the end of the movie, she rides off on horseback with the prince to live happily ever after. Most assume that this means she then married into a royal family as well.
• Aurora – The 1959 film, Sleeping Beauty, starts off with a grand celebration in honor of the birth of Princess Aurora. Aurora (who is also known as Briar Rose) was promised to Prince Phillip at birth through an arranged marriage that was meant to join two kingdoms. Throughout the film, Aurora and Phillip find each other in adulthood and fall in love on their own.
• Ariel – Daughter of King Triton, Ariel is the first Disney Princess who was not born human. We first see her in the 1989 film, The Little Mermaid, as just that…a mermaid. During the film, we see Ariel transformed into a human by Ursula, the evil sea witch, and her magic potion. By the end of the film, Ariel's father transforms her into a human with the power of his magical trident. Even though she’s born royal, we also see Ariel marry into royalty through her marriage to Prince Eric.
• Jasmine – Princess Jasmine comes to us from the 1992 film, Aladdin. Daughter to the Sultan of Agrabah, Jasmine is the first non-white Disney Princess. Also being Middle Eastern, Princess Jasmine brought a lot of diversity to the official Disney Princess lineup.
• Pocahontas – Introduced to us shortly after in the 1993 film titled after her, we meet Pocahontas. She is a princess by birth to Chief Powhatan. Being the second non-white official Disney Princess, Pocahontas is the first Native American princess. She is also the first, and only, princess that is based on a real person as opposed to a fairy tale.
• Rapunzel – Seventeen years later, we met our next royal-by-birth princess in the 2010 film, Tangled. Rapunzel is the daughter of King Frederic.
• Merida – Like Pocahontas, Merida is another Disney Princess that was not based on a fairy tale. However, she is not based on a real person. She is the first Disney Princess who has her own original story. We saw her story unfold in the 2012 film, Brave. Merida is a princess by birth, born to King Fergus of DonBroch.
• Moana – Moana, whose self-titled film came out in 2016, is the second Disney Princess who is the daughter of a chief. Moana was born to Chief Tui of Montunui. Just like Merida, Moana is another Disney Princess who has her own original story and isn’t based on anyone else.
• Raya – In the 2021 film, Raya and the Last Dragon, Raya is the third Disney Princess to be the daughter of a chief. Raya was born to Chief Benja of the Heart Lands. She is also the third princess in a row to have her own original story.

These princesses may be on this list because of their royal blood, but that doesn't mean that they don't also fit under the other official princess qualifications. Whether that be marriage into royalty, completing a heroic act, or both!

Disney Princess by Marriage

Next, let’s look at the princesses who were born commoners, but married into royalty. Now, just because these ladies were born “common”, they’re far from ordinary! These three ladies all show strength, courage, and bravery throughout their stories. This again shows that official princess criteria can, and have shared traits.

• Cinderella – The second ever Disney Princess comes to us from the 1950 film, Cinderella. While not born royal, Cinderella was born to a wealthy father. However, after his passing, her evil stepmother did not share any of that wealth with Cinderella. Instead, Cinderella was left to wear tattered clothes, live in poor conditions, and become a slave in her own home. However, by the end of the film, those rags were turned into riches. She falls in love with Prince Charming and marries into royalty.
• Belle – From the 1991 film, Beauty and the Beast, Belle is the second Disney Princess of common birth. Belle and her father, Maurice, live a simple life in a small village in France. Belle’s royalty comes to her after she marries Prince Adam, whom she originally meets in his form as the Beast.
• Tiana – Tiana, from the 2009 film, The Princess and the Frog, is the first African-American Disney Princess. Born to a common family, she blazes her own trail throughout the movie and becomes royalty after marrying Prince Naveen.

Disney Princess by Heroic Act

• Mulan – Fa Mulan, from the 1998 film, Mulan, is the only Disney Princess who does not actually hold the title of princess either from birth or marriage. Mulan earned her rank on the official list by committing a heroic act. Her bravery led her to disguise herself as a man and go off to war in her ill father’s place. Against all odds, she not only saves her father’s life, but she also saves all of China.

Unofficial Disney Princesses

While the official list is pretty clear-cut, there isn't a set list of unofficial Disney Princesses. There seem to be underlying factors that can cause a character to not make the cut.

Based on the official list, it can be determined that a princess needs to be in an animated film, not in a live-action film or television series. She also must be from an original movie as opposed to a sequel.

Money also plays a factor. If a film doesn't do well enough at the box office, or even if it does TOO well, the princess won't be on the official list. It also seems that the princess must have a certain look. Part of this is that the princess must be human or at least human-like. Let's dive deeper into these stipulations and see who we think would make great Disney princesses.

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Unofficial Disney Princess

All four of these ladies have been grouped with the official Disney Princesses in one way or another. They've been found with the princesses at Disney Parks, on Disney+, and in merchandise collections. Even with all of this recognition, they still aren't on the official list.

• Anna & Elsa – When we meet Anna and Elsa in the 2013 film, Frozen, they are both princesses of Arendelle by birth. So why are they not considered official Disney Princesses? Frozen ended up breaking box office records. This means that more money was able to be made off of Anna and Elsa within their own entity under the Frozen franchise as opposed to the Disney Princess franchise.
• Elena – Starring in the 2016 film, Elena and the Secret of Avalor, Princess Elena is a royal by birth. You can often find Elena with the official Disney Princesses on merchandise and at the Disney Parks for meet and greets and parades.
• Mirabel – Mirabel comes from the popular 2021 film, Encanto. While she isn't royal by birth or marriage, she would fall under the category of completing a heroic act. We saw Mirabel become the hero of her home, family, and town as she protected and restored the magic of Casita.

Doesn't Look Like a Disney Princess

There are plenty of female characters who have all of the qualifications but they just don't have “the look”. Some of these characters don't look like princesses simply because they're animals and not a human, or at least resemble a human (like Ariel when we first met her as a mermaid). Others are human but don't interest the public enough.

• Dot & Atta – These two ladies come to us from the 1998 film, A Bug's Life. Both Dot and Atta are princesses by birth, but they are princesses of an ant colony and therefore cannot be official Disney Princesses.
• Kiara – Princess Kiara, from the 1998 film Lion King 2: Simba's Pride, was born to King Simba. Even though she is a princess by birth, she is not an official Disney Princess due to being a lion and from a sequel.
• Kida – In 2001, we were introduced to a new princess in the movie Atlantis: The Lost Empire. While Kida is the princess of Atlantis, she is not an official Disney Princess. This could certainly do with the flop of the movie. Even so, you could find Princess Kida with the other Disney Princesses on merchandise. Unfortunately, she didn't stand out next to the other Disney Princesses.

Too Young to be a Disney Princess

There are a couple of little princesses who would be great contestants for the title due to their royal status and heroic acts, but they just aren't old enough to be official. While Snow White is the youngest official Disney Princess at just 14 years old, these girls are even younger.

• Sofia – Princess Sofia was introduced to us in 2012 in the Disney Jr. television series Sofia the First. Not only does Sofia not qualify since she was in a television series as opposed to a movie, but she was also only 8 years old when we first met her. Even though Sofia isn't one herself, many of the official Disney Princesses have appeared on her show. These princesses include Cinderella, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Merida, Rapunzel, Tiana, Mulan, Snow White, and Aurora.
• Vanellope von Schweetz – Our other little princess also came to us in 2012. In the movie, Wreck-It Ralph, Vanellope is the princess of the game Sugar Rush. Even though Vanellope is a royal and very heroic, she is only 9 years old. She also spends a good portion of the movie resenting the crown. Vanellope just wants to be a racer and would rather have the title of president than princess. This is another factor that most likely keeps her off of the official Disney Princess list. We do, however, see Vanellope with other Disney princesses (some official and some not) in her second movie, Ralph Breaks the Internet.

Live-action Disney Princesses

Even though many of the official princesses have live-action movie remakes, they must first appear in an animated film to be on the official list. There is an abundance of strong and royal women in Disney's live-action movies. Especially now that the Disney umbrella covers both Star Wars and Marvel.

• Leia Organa – Princess Leia holds all of the qualities of an official Disney Princess. We first saw Leia in the 1977 film Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope. She is not only a royal but committed many heroic acts throughout her time in the Star Wars movies. Princess Leia very seldomly acts like a typical princess. With a great passion for what she believes in, you can often find her fighting on the battlefield. As the movies progress, she even becomes a general.
• Shuri – An example of a great princess candidate from Marvel is the Princess of Wakanda, Shuri. In the 2018 film, Black Panther, we see Shuri fill the shoes of a princess, scientist, and warrior. She is not only a scientific genius who creates helpful items for her country and brother (who is the Black Panther and protector of Wakanda in the first film), but she also puts those items to use and helps fight when it becomes necessary. We also see her step up and take the role of the Black Panther in the 2022 film, Wakanda Forever.

Past Disney Princesses

There are some female characters that are no longer on the Disney Princess list who used to be on there before. They were all part of the initial lineup and then eventually removed.

• Tinker Bell – First seen in the 1953 film, Peter Pan, Tinker Bell is a fairy that was once part of the official Disney Princess lineup. Although she is a fairy, she is human-like, and why she was able to qualify. Similar to Anna and Elsa's situation, Tinker Bell became her own entity and moved over to a different franchise, Disney Fairies, which was the cause for her removal from the official Disney Princess list.
• Esmerelda – Esmerelda's story is very close to Princess Kida's. Esmerelda came to us in the 1996 film, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Throughout the movie, Esmerelda shows immense strength, courage, and heroic values. At one point, she was on the official Disney Princess list. She was, however, removed from the list over time. Compared to the other Disney Princesses, she does have a different look. Some also consider her, as well as themes from the film, inappropriate for children.
• Jane Porter – We first see Jane in the 1999 film, Tarzan. Like the others, Jane was once considered an official Disney Princess, but then later removed. Unlike the others who had specific reasons for their removal, Jane doesn't seem to. It could be that she doesn't fit the current qualifications. She isn't a royal and perhaps none of her acts during the movie are heroic enough to gain the title. There is also a theory that her style is too similar to Belle's with her flowing yellow gown and brown hair.

Future Disney Princess

Asha – While nothing is certain yet, it would be no surprise if Asha (from the newly released 2023 film, Wish) becomes an official Disney Princess. She has no royal connections but does commit heroic acts to save her community. You can already find Asha on merchandise and as a meet and greet at Disney Parks. If Wish does well, she may become too profitable to join the Disney Princess franchise (like Anna and Elsa). However, based simply on her qualities, we think she'd be a great candidate for the official Disney Princess list!

Who Should Be a Disney Princess?

Since there is no set list of unofficial Disney Princesses, the possibilities are endless. Who do you think should be recognized? Who do you think holds all of the qualities, but is overlooked for one reason or another? While there are only 13 official princesses currently, there are so many strong and heroic ladies in the world of Disney. Even if it's not with an official title, all of these women deserve appreciation and recognition.