Jake Paul, full name Jake Joseph Paul, was born on January 17, 1997, in Cleveland, Ohio. He is an American boxer, entrepreneur, and internet personality.
Paul rose from short comedy videos on Vine to headlining Netflix boxing events watched by millions.
Who is Jake Paul?
Jake Paul built his early fame on the video app Vine before moving to YouTube in 2014. He later starred as Dirk Mann on the Disney Channel series Bizaardvark for two seasons.
Paul turned that online fame into a professional boxing career starting in 2020. Today, he also runs a boxing promotion company, a betting startup, and a venture capital fund.
He fights out of Cleveland, Ohio, and competes in the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions. Fans and critics alike call him The Problem Child.
Early Life of Jake Paul
Jake Paul grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, in a close-knit family. His father, Gregory Allan Paul, worked as a realtor, and his mother, Pamela Ann Stepnick, worked at a bank.
He has one older brother, Logan Paul, who also became a well-known YouTuber, actor, and boxer. The two brothers grew up filming videos together long before either found fame online.
His interest in football and physical competition later carried over into his boxing career. That competitive streak showed up early, long before he ever stepped into a professional ring.
Jake Paul Age
Jake Paul is 29 years old as of 2026, born on January 17, 1997. His zodiac sign is Capricorn.
He turned professional in boxing at age 22 in January 2020. Since then, he has built one of the most talked-about combat sports careers of his generation.
Jake Paul Ethnicity and Nationality
Jake Paul is American, born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio. He comes from a white American background on both sides of his family.
His parents raised him and his brother Logan in Westlake, a suburb of Cleveland. That Ohio upbringing still shapes how Paul talks about his roots in interviews and on his podcast.
Jake Paul Height and Weight
Jake Paul stands 6 feet 1 inch tall, or about 1.85 meters. His fighting weight has ranged between roughly 199 and 227 pounds, or about 90 to 103 kilograms, depending on the opponent and division.
He has fought as low as cruiserweight, capped at 200 pounds, and as high as heavyweight against larger opponents. That size range lets him choose fights across two weight classes.
Jake Paul Education
Paul attended Westlake High School in Westlake, Ohio. He has not pursued a traditional four-year college degree, instead focusing on content creation and business ventures after high school.
His hands-on approach to learning shows up in how he built his companies. Paul has said he prefers real-world experience in business and boxing over classroom study.
Jake Paul Career
Early Career on Vine and YouTube
Jake Paul first gained attention posting short comedy clips on Vine. He uploaded his first YouTube vlog on May 15, 2014, and grew that channel into a daily vlogging operation.
In 2016, Paul landed the role of Dirk Mann on the Disney Channel series Bizaardvark. He stayed with the show through its second season before Disney parted ways with him in 2017 following complaints from his Los Angeles neighbors about his behavior.
That same year, Paul released the single It’s Everyday Bro. The song reached number 91 on the Billboard Hot 100 and earned a Platinum certification from the RIAA, even as it became one of YouTube’s most disliked videos.
Paul also formed Team 10, a collective of young influencers he managed and promoted. The group generated views and controversy in roughly equal measure during its run in the late 2010s.
Turn to Professional Boxing
Paul made his professional boxing debut on January 20, 2020, in Miami, defeating fellow YouTuber AnEsonGib by first-round TKO. Later that year, he knocked out former NBA player Nate Robinson in a bout that aired on a Mike Tyson pay-per-view card.
He kept building his record against mixed martial artists and boxers, including wins over Ben Askren and two victories over Tyron Woodley. In February 2023, Paul suffered his first professional loss, dropping a split decision to Tommy Fury.
Paul bounced back with wins over Andre August, Ryan Bourland, and Mike Perry. On November 15, 2024, he faced 58-year-old Mike Tyson in a heavily promoted bout that streamed on Netflix, winning by unanimous decision.
He then defeated former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. by unanimous decision on June 28, 2025, at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. That win pushed his record to 12 wins and 1 loss heading into his next fight.
Recent Work and Business Ventures
Paul stepped up in class again on December 19, 2025, challenging former two-time heavyweight world champion Anthony Joshua at the Kaseya Center in Miami. Joshua knocked him out in the sixth round, handing Paul a broken jaw and his second professional loss.
Outside the ring, Paul founded Most Valuable Promotions with adviser Nakisa Bidarian in 2021, a boxing promotion company that has staged several of his own cards. He also launched the sports betting app Betr in 2022 alongside Simplebet founder Joey Levy.
In 2021, Paul and entrepreneur Geoffrey Woo started Anti Fund, a venture capital firm that has backed companies including the payments platform Ramp and the defense technology firm Anduril. He later launched the men’s grooming brand W as another business line.
Paul and his family also star in the HBO Max reality series Paul American, which premiered in 2025. The show follows Jake, Logan, and their relatives through their daily lives and business dealings.
Jake Paul Awards and Recognition
Paul landed on Forbes’ Top Creators list in 2025, ranking third with roughly $50 million in reported earnings that year.
He previously appeared on Forbes’ highest-paid athletes list in 2022 after his three boxing bouts and other income streams brought in an estimated $38 million.
His fights have repeatedly drawn some of the largest gates and streaming audiences in modern boxing history. The November 2024 bout against Mike Tyson set streaming records for Netflix.
Jake Paul Fiancée
Jake Paul is engaged to Dutch speed skater Jutta Leerdam. The couple went Instagram official in April 2023, and Paul proposed to Leerdam in March 2025, sharing the news in a joint Instagram post.
Leerdam competed for the Netherlands at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and won gold in the women’s 1000 meters. The pair has said they plan to marry sometime after her Olympic season, likely in 2027.
Paul supported Leerdam through a difficult fall at her Olympic trials in December 2025 before watching her win gold two months later.
Their relationship has played out publicly across both of their social media accounts and in the Netflix documentary series Countdown: Paul vs. Tyson.
Jake Paul Net Worth
Jake Paul’s estimated net worth is $200 million as of 2026. His fortune comes from boxing purses, YouTube and social media earnings, and stakes in the companies he has founded or backed.
His biggest single paydays have come from the ring, including his November 2024 fight against Mike Tyson and his December 2025 bout against Anthony Joshua.
Beyond boxing, Paul earns through Most Valuable Promotions, Betr, Anti Fund, and the W grooming brand.
Jake Paul Social Media
Jake Paul is active across several major platforms. On Instagram, he posts as @jakepaul, where he shares fight updates, business news, and personal moments with Leerdam.
His YouTube channel, also called Jake Paul, still carries content from his vlogging and boxing career. On X, formerly Twitter, he posts as @jakepaul, often mixing boxing talk with political commentary.
Paul also posts on TikTok under the handle jakepaul, according to his own YouTube channel listing. He does not list current follower counts publicly in a way that stays accurate for long, so exact numbers change often.
The Bottom Line
Jake Paul turned a Vine account and a Disney Channel role into a professional boxing career that has included wins over Mike Tyson and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. His December 2025 loss to Anthony Joshua showed the limits of that run at the heavyweight level.
Paul grew up in Westlake, Ohio, alongside his brother Logan before both became major names in online video. He built businesses like Most Valuable Promotions, Betr, and Anti Fund around that fame rather than relying on boxing purses alone.
He is currently engaged to Olympic speed skating gold medalist Jutta Leerdam, with a wedding expected in 2027. We hope you enjoyed reading about Jake Paul. Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!