Ivo of Chartres was born in or near Chartres circa 1040 to a family of relatively low social status. He is claimed to have studied first in Paris, then in Abbey of Bec in Normandy where, according to the often unreliable Robert of Torigni, he studied under Lanfranc along with St. Anselm of Canterbury.

Not much is known of him until some time after he was admitted to the Roman Catholic clergy. His first benefice was at Nesle in Picardy. In 1067 Bishop Gui asked him to become the abbot of the new Augustinian house of St. Quentin at Beauvais. Ivo was skeptical of religious excess and always stressed moderation in practice. He remained at St. Quentin for twenty years and established himself as one of the best teachers in France.