Green Day was originally part of the punk rock scene around the 924 Gilman Street punk club in Berkeley. Their first albums, recorded on the independent label Lookout! Records, earned the band a large following. As a result, the group, along with other Californian punks (The Offspring, Rancid), raised a wave of huge interest in punk music not only in the US, but throughout the world. Green Day inspired such famous bands as Good Charlotte, Fall Out Boy, Simple Plan, All Time Low.

In 2011, the trio was voted the best punk band in the history of music in a poll conducted by Rolling Stone magazine. In 2015, Green Day was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The band became one of the most popular and successful punk rock bands. As of 2012, over 85 million copies of Green Day records have been sold, 30 of which are in the US.