DISCLAIMER: I'm not looking for who is correct or incorrect, these are opinions.

I just learned, rather suddenly, that my Dungeon Master thinks backgrounds are Essentially useless. I disagree and think it comes down to how you build it, the opportunity, and remembering what you can do. Now I'm curious about what the consensus is, what are your thoughts on backgrounds and their usefulness? 

Is it as consequential as your class or race?  no.  But that doesn't mean it's useless...there are a lot of benefits your background can lend a character, both mechanically (additional proficiencies, languages, etc) and through roleplay (informing how to play your character).  

Arguably the background is the most customizable;  you can easily swap out proficiencies and languages to work with your characters backstory, and add both flavor to your roleplay and mechanical benefits that make sense for your characters history.

Backgrounds include Skill Proficiencies, Tool Proficiencies, Languages, Equipment, and a Feature.

For classes like the Sorcerer, their proficiencies can nearly triple, so I really can't think of a single scenario in which Backgrounds could be considered useless.

The equipment quickly becomes irrelevant, and the usefulness of the "Feature" is largely up to DM Discretion.

Are you talking about "Backgrounds" more generically as "Backstories", or perhaps focusing on the Feature specifically? As written, Backgrounds are at least as useful as a Feat+.

I’m focusing on the backgrounds specifically as a whole. we both agree that backstory is hugely important.

A couple of bonus proficiencies and languages is definitely important, and the Ravnica backgrounds in particular can be quite useful by adding spells to your class spell list that you may not otherwise have access to.

But as for the "feature" part, which describes some sort of roleplaying feature your background gives you? I've never once seen a player ask to use them, or seen a situation where they'd matter one way or the other. 

Quote from AutiscCosplay >>

I’m focusing on the backgrounds specifically as a whole. we both agree that backstory is hugely important.

 Well I would think background and backstory go hand in hand. If your backstory is you grew up an orphan in on the streets of a city in a desert environment you probably wouldn’t pick the sailor background but urchin might fit in. 

And skills, tool, instrument, etc proficiencies from backgrounds can help inform the backstory and vice versa. 

Edit: I guess it’s up to you and your DM how useful or useless your background is. 

One of the PCs in my game gets to date a prince because of his background feature, so I wouldn't say they're useless.

Quote from Chicken_Champ >>

But as for the "feature" part, which describes some sort of roleplaying feature your background gives you? I've never once seen a player ask to use them, or seen a situation where they'd matter one way or the other. 

 
I’ve used the background features several times in the past. They’re not overly powerful, but they are useful in most campaigns that I play in. 

Background s are hugely important if only for things like the extra proficiencies. Most of them give you one or two skill proficiencies expanding your options. And the tool proficiencies can help too, though that’s going to be pretty campaign specific: being able to use, say, carpenters tools might never come up in some campaigns, but in one where you have to build a fortification, it’s going to be very impactful. Using navigators tool won’t natter on the plains, but you’ll be happy to have that character on a boat. 

Backgrounds are a big reason for why two characters that are the same class (and subclass, of course) will play differently. I mean, something like taking street urchin can turn any party member into the person who disarms traps instead of just the rogue. Taking entertainer can mean it’s not just the bard up there playing an instrument. 
They might not come up often in combat, but there are two other pillars of the game. 

Mechanically, they provide additional skill/tool/language/etc proficiencies, so they help add to a character's capabilities. Narratively, they help flesh out the backstory for your character, and create new roleplay possibilities. If I had to guess, I'd say that a large percentage of players who think Backgrounds are useless are focusing way more on combat than on exploration or social aspects of the game. And if that's how you want to play, you could always just let everyone make a Custom Background and choose the proficiencies they want. Personally, I like the Background options. Sometimes I try to find a Background to match the story I have in my head, sometimes I see a Background that has the skills I want, and try to come up with a character concept I like that fits.

They are less impactful than class or race, but far from useless. They are generally more impactful than a (non-combat) feat. 2 skills, 2 languages (or tools), and a minor feature that could do an assortment of things from finding food or shelter without a check to getting free spellcasting services.

Backgrounds are super important. They help inform backstory and the knowledge of the world and their place in it a character has. 

For example, if we completely removed Backgrounds, then my position and skills as a City Watch Investigator would be useless because of my backstory, being a vigilante and using that Background to help cover for the things I'm doing. 

'Essentially Useless' is a bit of a hyperbole. At best it's a broad stroke statement. Backgrounds provide things like skills, tool proficiencies, equipment, flaws, bonds, personalities, languages and a background feature. If you don't use these things then it would be useless to you. Like if your characters only ever dungeon crawled or do one-shots and they didn't really do any meaningful Roleplaying or Exploration in your game. Some games lean on their backgrounds more, some less. Neither is really wrong, just a different style of play.

Backgrounds help me flesh out a character. Much like picking hair and eye colour. Those things don't make any difference on my attack roll against the orc captain, but I feel more connected and invested in my character because of it. Caring about your character and investing in them is an essential part of the game for many people because it's a Roleplaying game. It's more difficult to play a role if you know nothing about the character's past. Knowing where a character came from is helpful for understanding who they are right now; and why they are who they are. Motivation, upbringing, personal desires, past experience all can impact how a character behaves. Your background is meant to help provide this for you.

But if you don't really roleplay or its not a big part of your game then things like backgrounds, character descriptions and even their names don't mean as much. Some people can play a faceless page of stats and numbers and have a great time. Nothing wrong with that. Others enjoy creating the narrative. Both are fine.

It depends on the player. If all the player uses is the skills etc, then yes mostly useless. But if the player reminds me ever so often that he is x,y,z, then I can remember to use it. I had a army cook (soldier) have a long talk with an goblin over cooking gnomes and what spices. This took one goblin out of combat for two rounds. 

Backstory is useful.

The "background feature" is not something I could call useful or useless as a general proposition. It depends on context. For example, maybe you have no real good ideas, but the background of "Entertainer" gives you some ideas and helps you write a backstory. That is useful.

On the other hand, you have an idea and NONE of the backgrounds fit it, so you have to take one that is close but not really right, and then essentially ignore it in RP because it doesn't *really* fit. Such a background is useless as a practical matter in game-play.

So, Backgrounds mechanically within the game supply proficiencies which is almost universally useful, Starting equipment which can be useful situationally, and a unique background feature which is highly game dependent on how useful those are. In addition, they supply character traits, bonds and flaws that can be useful to inspire how a character behaves if the player needs that sort of help. 

If the conversation is about Backstory or Back-narrative, that is a completely different conversation and depends very highly on the type of game you are playing, type of player you are, and the type of people you play with. 

Quote from Chicken_Champ >>

But as for the "feature" part, which describes some sort of roleplaying feature your background gives you? I've never once seen a player ask to use them, or seen a situation where they'd matter one way or the other. 

 That genuinely surprises me. When my players remember these features they use them frequently.

In the campaign I was DMing pre-COVID, the party was struggling to find clues to the whereabouts of their objective. The PCs spent a couple of days pursuing some of the false leads and such that they had. Once the Wizard remembered the Researcher feature granted by his Sage background the party got the intel they needed in short order and were just setting off on the next leg of their quest to find the lost city of Zadreth when the pandemic hit.

In the campaign I am currently DMing, the party is constantly interacting with the three retainers that one of the PCs received for being a Knight.

The Bard I play in another campaign uses his By Popular Demand feature in almost every town since he usually throws so much money around that he’s broke all the time.

I betcha folks would remember these features more often if they were listed under Features & Traits instead of under Description. Like, I understand why the rest of the background stuff is under Description, and why they kept all the background stuff together on the sheet, but if the Racial Traits portion of Features & Traits was expanded into a Race & Background section then more players would likely remember their backgrounds have features too.

I've found them very useful. My cleric's acolyte background has gotten us free shelter on multiple occasions, and access to spells that I'm not at a level to cast multiple times. To be fair, the DM has stretched the restrictions on Shelter of the Faithful at times, but it's always been his decision to waive the restrictions, with the logic that the situations in question either affected the population the religious order served, or that yes there's a spell component with a cost, but there's no way this temple didn't already have this component. The Outlander Wanderer feature is similarly incredibly useful -- it cuts way down on having to worry about food (not that many games do, but still). A lot of them have great utility as plot hooks as well -- getting an in to a noble court, having a criminal contact, being able to get passage on a ship, etc.

It's odd to me that it's OP's DM saying backgrounds are useless because a DM totally has the power to make the features useful. For instance I might not normally bother with making the party forage for food, but if the party has an Outlander then you can be damn certain I will be giving them the opportunity to flex that background feature.

I've found the background features a great way to kind of pull backstories to the foreground for a moment. Especially when a player is not a confident roleplayer, giving them the chance to do the thing they know they can do because of their background is a great way to let them communicate who their character is to the other players. It's like the gateway drug to roleplaying.

 I find backgrounds to be a very useful tool in building backstories and solidifying PC motivations. Like if a character has a background as a criminal it can be very useful if your rogue is looking for specific info and contacts. If your fighter was a soldier they could have intimate knowledge on how the kingdom operates. If you have a character who has  sailor background you have an easier time gaining passage on the water or information from other seafarers. If your DM doesn’t think backgrounds are relevant I think that’s a pretty significant opportunity missed. You can have a lot of fun weaving backgrounds into the overall story and use them for character development. Also depending on the background you can gains skills you might not have within the confines of your class, you can gain extra tools, proficiencies, and languages which can be pretty useful too!