Additional lyrics were written by guitar player Keith Scott and country pop singer Shania Twain.

"Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know" received mostly positive reviews from music critics, who considered it a good break from the album's genre and praised Spears' vocals, comparing them to those of Twain and Stevie Wonder.

"Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know" was only released for mainstream radio in the United States; therefore, it failed to appear on most major music charts in the country.

An accompanying music video, directed by Herb Ritts, portrays Spears in love scenes with her on-screen boyfriend, played by French model Brice Durand.

The singer's real-life boyfriend at the time Justin Timberlake, however, was said to be annoyed at the kissing scenes, while Spears' mother, Lynne, objected to the explicit sexuality of the original cut of the video.

[2][3] After meeting with Robert Lange in Switzerland, the singer started to record several songs for the album, including "Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know".

[10] A NME staff reviewer said that the song takes the riff of David Bowie and Iggy Pop's "China Girl" (1983) and "puts it over schmaltzy cocktail-hour bass and love film strings".

Terrell further commented that the "Eagles-esque chorus" features "an '80s hair band power ballad groove" where "Britney soul-maxes with a vocal that channels both Stevie Wonder (via "Knocks Me Off My Feet") and Shania herself.

[9] A NME staff reviewer considered the track "absolutely frightening",[8] with Tracy E. Hopkins of Barnes & Noble deeming "Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know" a "polished ballad", and praising Shania Twain for the songwriting.

I Did It Again, noted that Spears may not have the vocal range of "colleagues Jessica Simpson and Christina Aguilera, but she does have an instantly recognizable style-and Oops!...

[18] Paoletta's colleague Chuck Taylor, in his single review for the song, named it Spears' "first serious bid for credibility" and that she offered a vocal performance "that's relaxed and downright sensuous compared with that of her up-tempo ditties.

"[19] While reviewing 2011's Femme Fatale Tour, Jocelyn Vena of MTV considered the song, along with "Toxic", "old-school jams".

[20] Bustle's Alex Kristelis highlighted its "epic" chorus while the staff from Entertainment Weekly called it "a pretty mid tempo melody", and placed it at number 84 on their ranking of Spears' songs.

[23] Nicholas Hautman, from Us Weekly, concluded that "Spears showcases her soulful, unwavering vocals on this well-executed ballad".

However, "Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know" was successful in Europe, debuting and peaking at number nine on the European Hot 100 Singles on the chart issue dated April 14, 2001.

[28] Despite reaching number 14 in Denmark,[6] the song was later certified gold by International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), for shipping over 4,000 units of the single in the country.

[33] "The story is, pretty much, Britney longing for him to tell her the words", said Ritts,[33] who was impressed with the chemistry between the singer and her on-screen boyfriend, played by French model Brice Durand.

[31] Spears' mother, Lynne, also considered the original music video too racy at the time because it contained sexual material.

[38] The first performance of "Don't Let Me Be the Last to Know" was on March 8, 2000, during the Crazy 2k Tour in Pensacola, Florida, where Spears appeared onstage sitting on a magic carpet and flew over the audience while singing the song.

[47] Shirley Halperin of The Hollywood Reporter named it one of the best performances of the show along with "Piece of Me" and "3", stating that "ironically enough, [they] were the ones with fewest frills.

"[48] In a review of the special broadcast by American premium television channel Epix of the tour, Jocelyn Vena of MTV summarized her thoughts about the performance saying, "It's rare these days to see Britney Spears show her soft side, but she takes a break from the nonstop, fist-pumping music during the spectacle that is the Femme Fatale Tour and kicks it old-school, showing us she still has the heart and soul to bust out a power ballad.