, the son of Liu Sheng, a son of Emperor Jing. However, Pei Songzhi's commentary, based on the Dianlue (典略), said that Liu Bei was a descendant of the Marquess of Linyi (臨邑侯）, also descended from Emperor Jing. His grandfather Liu Xiong and father Liu Hong were both employed as local clerks.

Liu Bei grew up in a poor family, having lost his father when he was still a child. To support themselves, Liu Bei and his mother sold shoes and straw-woven mats. Even so, Liu Bei was full of ambition since childhood: he once said to his peers, while under a tree that resembled the royal chariot, that he desired to become an emperor. At the age of 14, Liu Bei, sponsored by a more affluent relative who recognised his potential in leadership, went to study under the tutelage of Lu Zhi (a prominent scholar and, at the time, former Administrator of Jiujiang). There he met and befriended Gongsun Zan, a prominent northern warlord to be. The adolescent Liu Bei was said to be unenthusiastic in studying and displayed interest in hunting, music and dressing. Concise in speech, calm in demeanor, and kind to his friends, Liu Bei was well liked by his contemporaries. He was said to have long arms and large earlobes.