Chen was born on 9 November 1985 in Changle District, Fuzhou. He is the son of Hu Xiaoling (胡小玲), an actress. Chen’s uncle is Chen Kaige, a noted Chinese director. Chen graduated from Shanghai Theatre Academy, majoring in acting.

In 2009, Chen starred in a romantic comedy television series IPartment; the series was one of the most watched ones in mainland China in that year. Chen also filmed in a number of successful sequels to IPartment.

In September 2013, Chen married high school sweetheart Xu Jing (许婧; 許婧; Xǔ Jìng) in Phuket Island, Thailand, who was a graduate of University of Auckland. However, their marriage came to an end in 2014. In April 2015, Chen confessed that he divorced in secret with his wife since he did not have time to stay home with his wife. Speculations of extra-marital affairs with Chen’s co-star Zhang Zixuan in Laughter Medical Centre were rife following their split.

In 2014, Chen took part in the Chinese remake of the Korean Running Man; this popularized him among television audiences once again.

In 2016, Chen married actress Zhang Zixuan. On 23 October, their daughter was born.