Perrault was born in Paris to a wealthy bourgeois family, son of Pierre Perrault and Paquette Le Clerc. His brother, Claude Perrault, is remembered as the architect of the severe east range of the Louvre, built between 1665 and 1680. Charles attended the best schools and studied law before embarking on a career in government service. He took part in the creation of the Academy of Sciences as well as the restoration of the Academy of Painting.
He married in 1672 to Marie Guichon, 19, who died in 1678 after giving birth to a daughter and three sons. When Colbert died in 1683, he lost his pension as a writer.
In 1695, at the age of 67, he lost his post as secretary. He decided to dedicate himself to his children and published Tales and Stories of the Past with Morals.  Its publication made him suddenly widely-known beyond his own circles and marked the beginnings of a new literary genre, the fairy tale.
He died in Paris in 1703 at 75 years old.