Most of its members play in various other groups and solo projects, mainly in the city of Toronto. These associated acts include Metric, Feist, Stars, Apostle of Hustle, Do Make Say Think, KC Accidental, Emily Haines & The Soft Skeleton and Jason Collett. The group's sound combines elements of all of its members' respective musical projects, and is occasionally considered baroque pop. It includes grand orchestrations featuring guitars, horns, woodwinds, and violins, unusual song structures, and an experimental, and sometimes chaotic production style from David Newfeld, who produced the second and third albums.

The band has released six studio albums to date: Feel Good Lost (2001), You Forgot It in People (2002), Broken Social Scene (2005), Forgiveness Rock Record (2010), Hug of Thunder (2017) and Remember the Humans (2026), alongside various EPs, compilations and companion albums.

Stuart Berman's This Book Is Broken (2009) covers the band from its inception to its critical acclaim. In 2010, Bruce McDonald made This Movie Is Broken, a movie about the band's Harbourfront show during the 2009 Toronto strike. In 2024, cinematographer Stephen Chung collaborated with his longtime friends in the band to complete and release the film It's All Gonna Break, a project he had set aside in 2007, using new as well as historical footage he had filmed throughout the band's career.

The collective and their respective projects have had a broad influence on alternative music and indie rock during the early 21st century; in 2021, Pitchfork listed the band among the "most important artists" of the last 25 years.