It debuted and peaked at number 2 on the UK Albums Chart and has been certified 3× Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry for sales of over 900,000.

The album was originally intended to be titled Drum Roll, and was referred to as such in press releases and interviews up until October of that year.

"She Wants to Be Me" and "3am" were co-written with production team The Matrix, which showed a slight departure in sound for the band, venturing more into pop punk.

"Fake" and "Better Than This" were collaborations between Willis, Guy Chambers and Steve Power, and both were hailed as stand-out tracks on the album in critical reviews.

"Why" shows a much heavier rock sound, similar to that of Simpson's future project Fightstar, for which he later left Busted to commit to full-time.

[10] AllMusic stated: "Though it's way too long at fifteen tracks, the album at least sticks to its template of earnest, slightly bawdy tales of boys and girls wrapped around peppy, ultra-slick, and sickeningly in-the-moment guitar pop.

"[16] AbsolutePunk's Broden Terry called the album "one of the better pop releases in recent memory" and added: "I'd recommend giving A Present for Everyone a listen because rarely has music ever been and sounded so fun."