[5] Founded in 2002 by Tom Vellios and David Schlessinger and headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the chain is aimed at tweens and teens.

It began its outward expansion away from the Philadelphia Metro area by entering additional out-of-state markets: Illinois and Michigan in 2011;[pr 3] Georgia, Kansas, Missouri, and Western Michigan in 2012;[pr 4] Texas in 2013;[12] Tennessee in 2014; Alabama, Florida, and Kentucky[13] in 2015; Louisiana, Minnesota, Oklahoma, West Virginia, and Wisconsin in 2016;[14] California in 2017; and Arkansas in 2018.

[16] In September 2014, the company announced a new lease agreement to move its New Castle, Delaware, distribution center to Oldmans Township, New Jersey.

[20][21] On July 16, 2024, Five Below announced Joel Anderson had resigned from his roles as president and CEO to pursue other interests.

[28] In 2018, Five Below moved its corporate headquarters, now called WowTown,[29] to the Lit Brothers Building in the Market East section of Philadelphia, and has rights to more than 200,000 square feet.

[32] After Hurricane Sandy, Five Below partnered with the American Red Cross and collected over $50,000 through a $1 donation at the register program.