The band's fourth album, 2003's Transatlanticism, broke into the mainstream both critically and commercially; its songs were featured in various TV series and films.

[4] Many of the early songs were recorded in the basement of a house on Ellis Street in which Gibbard lived with several roommates.

Kurland had heard the band praised, and after a failed attempt to see them perform at South by Southwest he met them while touring with a client.

[3] Although Tolzdorf-Larson did not contribute to the album, he did appear on the song "Spring Break Broke" from the "Death Cab for Fiver" 7-inch record.

[3] The album received critical acclaim and launched the band into mainstream commercial success, with the two singles "The Sound of Settling" and "Title and Registration", appearing in the soundtracks of the television shows The O.C.,[4] Six Feet Under, CSI: Miami and Californication, and the films Wedding Crashers, Easy A, and Mean Creek.

[6] According to their manager Jordan Kurland, the band had spoken to "pretty much all of them", and then decided they were most satisfied with their offer from Atlantic Records.

[6] In November 2004, the band signed a "long-term worldwide deal" with Atlantic, leaving their long-time label Barsuk Records.

[9] Gibbard stated on the band's official website that nothing would change, except that "next to the picture of Barsuk holding a 7", there will be the letter 'A' on both the spine and back of our upcoming albums.

"[10] After signing to Atlantic, the band was still nervous about corporate economics, and encouraged fans to download its songs from the Internet.

[17] Death Cab for Cutie made their first appearance at Neil Young's annual Bridge School Benefit, and completed their lengthy 2006 tour of the United States on December 10, 2006, finishing with a show at the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington.

The band lost in both categories, but prompted debate after appearing at the ceremony sporting blue ribbons to protest against what they view as the excessive use of Auto-Tune in the music industry.

[24] On March 31, 2009, the band released The Open Door EP, containing tracks left off Narrow Stairs as well as a demo for "Talking Bird".

[29] The 1983 album Dazzle Ships, by English electronic band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), was a major influence on the record.

[30] In March 2011, Ben Gibbard performed a new Death Cab for Cutie song at a solo concert in San Francisco, which would later be revealed as the title track from Codes and Keys.

The band was due to play at the Ottawa Bluesfest on July 17, 2011, but the outdoor stage collapsed earlier in the evening after sudden severe weather hit the area.

[39] On August 13, 2014, after 17 years as a member of Death Cab for Cutie, guitarist and songwriter Chris Walla decided to part ways with the band, with his last performance occurring on September 13, 2014, at the Rifflandia Music Festival in Victoria, British Columbia.

"[41] Walla plans to "continue making music, producing records, and erring on the side of benevolence and beauty whenever possible.

Other artists participating in the project included Aimee Mann, who sang on Gibbard's solo album, as well as My Morning Jacket's Jim James and R.E.M.

The band returned to in-person live performances after 18 months in September 2021, playing shows with Perfume Genius and Deep Sea Diver.

[59] On October 29, 2021, the band shared a commemorative 20-year anniversary reissue of The Photo Album which featured studio outtakes, demos and rare recordings.

[61] On May 5, 2022, the band confirmed that they had finished work on their tenth studio album,[62] which was announced the following week on May 11 as being titled Asphalt Meadows, which was released on September 16.

The album's lead single, "Roman Candles", was released on the same day, alongside the announcement of a North American tour with Low and Yo La Tengo.

[63] Between 2023 and 2024, the band embarked on an extensive arena tour with Gibbard's other project, The Postal Service, performing both Transatlanticism and Give Up in full to celebrate the albums' 20th anniversaries.

[64][65][66] At the tour's close in August 2024, Gibbard noted that the band would take their time in writing and recording an eleventh studio album.

[78] On Something About Airplanes the band's style remained similar, with some new instrumental work introduced; "flute, synth, or cello" were noted by AllMusic's Nitsuh Abebe.

Pitchfork called them a "gentle niche" in the current rock climate, compared with bands such as Modest Mouse and Built to Spill.

[80] Rolling Stone reviewed Transatlanticism and commented that it contained "melodic, melancholy songs about feeling both smart and confused, hopelessly romantic but wary of love.

"[81] Gibbard's voice was described as "plaintive boy-next-door"[81] Entertainment Weekly commented on the music on Plans, saying "The lush arrangements are long on hothouse organs and pianos, but short on the squirmy guitars and squirrelly beats that, on Gibbard's best work, offset his sweet voice and borderline-maudlin poetics with a sense of emotional danger.

"[13] The band's music on Plans was described by the Dallas Morning News as "a literate, whispery style, the kind of stuff that normally sounds better in headphones than in large venues".

The song is a track on the Bonzo's 1967 debut album, Gorilla, and was performed by them in the Beatles film Magical Mystery Tour.