Yedlin was born and raised in Seattle, Washington. Yedlin began playing soccer at age four and learned while watching his uncle from the sideline. Yedlin was a product of O’Dea High School in Seattle, and was part of Washington Youth Soccer’s State Olympic Development Program (ODP) from 2006 to 2009. He also played youth soccer for Emerald City FC and Northwest Nationals before going to U.S. Soccer Development Academy club Crossfire Premier. Yedlin stayed in the DA, but moved to the Seattle Sounders FC youth academy for the 2010–11 season.