Beyoncé was around 18 years old when she first met Jay-Z. They reportedly met in 1999 or 2000, with Beyoncé confirming in interviews that she was 18 at the time. Jay-Z was about 30 years old then, making him roughly 12 years older than her
. Although they met when she was 18, Beyoncé has said they were friends for about a year and a half before they started dating, which began when she was about 19 years old
. Jay-Z also mentioned meeting her around 1997, when she was 16, but the more consistent and confirmed accounts point to them meeting when she was 18 and starting a romantic relationship about a year later
. In summary:
- Beyoncé was 18 when she met Jay-Z.
- They became friends first and started dating when she was about 19.
- Jay-Z was about 30 when they met.
This timeline aligns with their early collaborations and public appearances together in the early 2000s
