Smash is the third studio album by American rock band the Offspring, released on April 8, 1994, through Epitaph Records. After touring in support of their previous album Ignition (1992), the band recorded their next album for nearly two months at Track Record in North Hollywood, California. Smash was the band's final studio album to be produced by Thom Wilson, who had worked with them since their 1989 debut album The Offspring. Smash was put together on the spot in the studio and there was no systematic work behind the recording of the album.

The rise of grunge, especially Nirvana's successful release of Nevermind (1991), paved the way for American punk rock to reach a wider audience, with punk rock serving as an important base to the grunge sound. While Ignition had exceeded both the band's and the label's commercial expectations, it did not give the Offspring a major commercial breakthrough; Smash was the band's introduction into worldwide popularity. It produced a number of hit singles, including "Come Out and Play", "Self Esteem", and "Gotta Get Away". Along with Green Day's Dookie, Smash was responsible for bringing punk rock into the mainstream, and helped pave the way for the then-emerging pop punk scene of the 1990s.

As a fan favorite, the album received generally positive reviews from critics and garnered attention from major labels, including Columbia Records, with whom the band would sign in 1996. Peaking at number four on the US Billboard 200, Smash has sold over eleven million copies worldwide, making it the best-selling album released by an independent record label; it was also the first Epitaph release to obtain gold and platinum status. In the United States, Smash has sold over six million copies and has been certified six times platinum by the RIAA.

In 1991, the Offspring released the Baghdad 7". This EP was the turning point for the band; due to its success the band signed with Epitaph Records. Thom Wilson, who produced the Offspring's first two albums, had been trying to get the Offspring to switch to Epitaph, a label run by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. Gurewitz felt that the Offspring was just not quite pronounced enough for his label, but Baghdad convinced him to give the band a shot. Wilson and the Offspring entered the studio again and recorded Ignition. Released in 1992, Ignition exceeded all of the label's and band's expectations. Following the subsequent touring to support Ignition, the Offspring began writing new material for their third album in mid-1993.

Smash was recorded in 20 days between January and February 1994 at Track Record in North Hollywood. On the recording process of the album, frontman Dexter Holland told Flux Magazine in 1994, "When we recorded this album, our last one has sold maybe 15,000 copies, so the possibility of us getting played on the radio or anything like that was pretty much nonexistent. Especially because this kind of music is not generally considered acceptable by the mainstream - so, for something like this to happen, it really took us by surprise."

Smash had a small budget of $20,000, which frequently restricted the band. According to guitarist Noodles, "[we] were constantly calling our studio to find out when it was empty just so we could sneak in at a discount price". Holland recalled "writing up to the last minute". The last four songs recorded for the album were worked on through just two nights.

Punk rock and pop-punk bands like Green Day and Rancid were gaining popularity, and riding on this wave of popularity, Smash's singles became radio rock hits. An example of this was the success of the Offspring's first major single release, "Come Out and Play", which reached No. 1 on Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.

The second single released from the album, "Self Esteem", became a radio hit, peaking at number 4 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.