The song was certified platinum once by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and four times by Music Canada.

It depicts a young couple (played by Jamie Bell and Evan Rachel Wood) that are split up after the boyfriend joins the United States Marine Corps during the Iraq War, and leaves the fate of him and his division uncertain.

[1] A punk rock concept album, American Idiot's narrative is focused on the story of a teenager (who refers to himself as the "Jesus of Suburbia") growing up in the United States under the presidency of George W. Bush during the Iraq War, criticizing both.

[2] On the day of his father's funeral, Armstrong reportedly ran home, locked himself in his room, and when his mother came to check on him, he told her to wake him up when September ended,[5] and held onto the song title for several years after.

[6] In an interview with the Howard Stern Show, Armstrong said that he initially avoided writing a song about his father for years, until he "[had] a breakthrough" and created "Wake Me Up When September Ends" in his honor.

"[8] The last few seconds of the song are silence only broken by a few reverberated guitar notes, which Blum described to "embody the sad aftermath.

These meanings range from contributing to the narrative of American Idiot to the song being interpreted as a homage to the victims of the September 11 attacks.

The former is supported by lyrics that reference an earlier song in the album (specifically "Holiday") and the friends and family that the Jesus of Suburbia left behind on his journey.

[8] Matthew Leimkuehler of American Songwriter described the song as having a "memorable, powerful message" that discussed long-lasting grief and the consequences of unexpected life events.

[27] When ranking the band's songs, Scott Waldman of Alternative Press and the staff of Consequence placed "Wake Me Up When September Ends" at numbers 8 and 20 respectively.

[30] In the United States, the song reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100, and spent twenty weeks on the chart.

[49] Bayer brought the idea of an Iraq War-themed video to the band after interviewing soldiers who had signed up to fight after being persuaded by a television advertisement.

[52] Bayer and his crew spent a month casting actors for the roles and conducted rehearsals, which was uncommon for music videos.

The boyfriend interprets his actions as a way to show her that he loves her to the point that he would put his life on the line to keep her safe.

[57] Michael Moore of Rolling Stone praised the music video's "authentic" depiction of war, and its effect on soldiers.

[60] "Wake Me Up When September Ends" has been included on the set lists of numerous Green Day concert tours.

[68] Armstrong again performed the song for One World: Together At Home, a charity live stream dedicated to COVID-19 relief efforts hosted by Global Citizen, in April 2020.

[57] The association began after a blogger (known as Karmagrrrl) created a video pairing the song with recordings of television coverage of the disaster, which went viral.

[57] Green Day performed the song for ReAct Now: Music & Relief, a benefit concert dedicated to the victims of the hurricane.

[73][74] According to Loudwire, its viewership on YouTube increased by 135 percent on the last day of September 2019 compared to the rest of the year's daily average.

[74] The resurgence in popularity around the end of the month also coincides numerous social media posts and internet memes being created, most asking to "wake Armstrong up".

[76][77] He later referenced the memes in a promotional video released on October 1, 2023, for the then-upcoming song "The American Dream Is Killing Me.