Luhan was born in Haidian, Beijing, China, on April 20, 1990. He graduated from Beijing Shida Middle School and attended the Beijing Haidian Foreign Language Shi Yan School before leaving for South Korea to attend Yonsei University as an exchange student. In 2008, he auditioned for JYP Entertainment's worldwide audition in China, but did not pass the audition. While studying in Seoul, he was observed by an S.M. Entertainment agent, who advised him to do a successful audition for the agency, being placed in a dormitory with other SM interns, and trained in singing, dancing, and acting.