Peretti was born and raised in Oakland, California,[4] the daughter of an Italian American father and Jewish mother.[5][6] Peretti attended The College Preparatory School in Oakland. She moved to New York in 1996 to attend Barnard College[4][7] and graduated in 2000.[8][9][10] She attended elementary school with her Brooklyn Nine-Nine co-star Andy Samberg, and junior high school with comedian Moshe Kasher.[11]