Sandra majored in drama at East Carolina University. She left ECU during the spring semester of her Senior year at ECU, only three credits short of graduating, to pursue acting in New York City, but found it difficult to establish herself. She later received an honorary degree from ECU. She moved to Los Angeles, California and landed a series of small roles in several independent films and, eventually, she got the lead role in the TV version of the movie Working Girl.

Bullock's first notable movie appearance was in Demolition Man in 1993, which led to her breakthrough performance in Speed the following year. She became a bona fide star in the mid–late 90s, carrying a string of successes on the strength of her name alone. She also runs her own production company, Fortis Films.

Bullock was born to the late German-born opera singer Helga Meyer who died of cancer on April 4, 2000, and the Alabama-born voice teacher John Bullock. She started singing as a child in Germany, where she also studied ballet and performed small parts in her mother's operas. She lived 12 years in Fürth, Germany; consequently, she is fluent in German. Bullock attended Washington-Lee High School where she was a cheerleader and was voted "Most Likely to Brighten up Your Day" by her class.

Bullock married motorcycle builder and Monster Garage host Jesse James on July 16, 2005. In the past, she had previously dated Troy Aikman, Matthew McConaughey, and Ryan Gosling. She was engaged to actor Tate Donovan.

In October 2004, she won a multi-million-dollar judgment in a lawsuit against Benny Daneshjou, the builder of her Lake Austin, Texas mansion, a home in which she has never lived, claiming it is uninhabitable. The builder denies any wrongdoing and is appealing the verdict.