Hatebreed was formed in 1994 in Bridgeport and New Haven. They began by recording a three song demo and selling it to locals. Those three songs would eventually be released on a split seven inch with New York's Neglect in 1995. They followed that up with the highly acclaimed EP Under the Knife in 1996, and went out on tour around the east coast/midwest with the UKHC band Voorhees. The following year they released Satisfaction is the Death of Desire on Victory Records, then the home of some of the biggest bands in American hardcore / metalcore. Satisfaction sold more copies than any other debut in the history of the record company.
Tours with national metal bands such as Slayer, Deftones, Entombed and Napalm Death influenced their music and brought them to the attention of many non-hardcore fans. These influences were apparent on the band's next two releases, 2002's Perseverance, and especially 2003's The Rise of Brutality.
After the release of The Rise of Brutality, the band took part in the 2004 Unholy Alliance tour in Europe with Slayer, Slipknot and Mastodon. In June, 2006, Hatebreed went on an extensive European tour which included a performance at the Download Festival in Donnington, UK. Immediately following this European tour, they played the main stage at Ozzfest 2006 alongside DragonForce, Lacuna Coil, Avenged Sevenfold, Disturbed, and co-headliners System of a Down.
The band's fourth album, Supremacy, was released in August, 2006, their first through Roadrunner Records, featuring new guitarist Frank Novinec (who had previously spent time playing with Ringworm, Terror, and Integrity). Jasta described it as an "all-out onslaught of completely adrenaline-charged, in-your-face brutality".
On September 13, 2006, former guitarist Lou "Boulder" Richards committed suicide at the age of 35; he had played on 1997's Satisfaction Is The Death Of Desire and left the band in 2002.
Hatebreed headlined the second stage on the 2007 Ozzfest tour. Hatebreed appeared at Wacken Open Air festival in 2008 alongside Iron Maiden, Children of Bodom, and Avantasia. In April 2008, Hatebreed signed a worldwide deal with Koch Records for the release of their live DVD, a live album, and a cover album entitled "For The Lions", which was released on May 5. On September 2, they released their concert DVD, entitled "Live Dominance". Artists covered included Metallica, D.R.I., Crowbar, and the Cro-Mags.
On February 9, 2009 Guitarist Sean Martin quit the band. Sean quit the band to pursue other interests in music that are more studio-related. However, Sean remains close to and in contact with Hatebreed members.
Hatebreed's fifth studio album, entitled Hatebreed, has been released September 29, 2009. In May 2009, the band also released For the Lions, a record consisting of covers of songs by artists that have influenced the band's development.
In 2010, Hatebreed participated in the third annual Mayhem Festival, alongside 3 Inches of Blood, Shadows Fall, and other bands. On February 17, 2011, it was announced that Hatebreed would partake in the fourth annual Mayhem Festival to yet again headline the Jägermeister stage for 3 dates only.
Their Sixth studio album Divinity of Purpose was released on January 25 in Europe and January 29 in North America. The cover art was done by Eliran Kantor (Testament, Sodom etc.)