The song was written by Gomez, Julia Michaels, Justin Tranter, ASAP Rocky, Hector Delgado, and its producers Nick Monson and Nolan Lambroza.

The singer then received the song through the trio's A&R and was entirely involved in its creative session, helping to develop it as a representation of her process of self-realization, her confidence as a young woman, and her feelings of vulnerability.

"Good for You" received acclaim from music critics, who praised its minimalistic production, sex appeal and Gomez's vocals, as well as her maturity and artistic growth; some of them, however, had mixed reactions towards Rocky's contribution.

Commercially, the song reached the top twenty of countries as Australia, Austria, Canada, Denmark, France, New Zealand, and Spain, as well as Czech Republic and Slovakia's digital charts.

Both videos received positive feedback from critics, who praised the singer's sensuality and the growth in her artistic imagery, describing the first as her "most intimate" to date and comparing it to Del Rey's works.

[2] She described the song as "a piece that was just everything I feel a woman should embody, but not in the obvious way"[6] and explained to iHeartRadio: "I think it just sets the tone perfect for the record just because it's sexy, but not trying too hard.

[8][9] It was uninterruptedly recorded in 45 minutes[6] at Interscope Studios in Santa Monica, California;[10] during the process, Gomez's vocals featured cracks as the song "took on this emotion [she] didn't realize [she] could tap into", and at the beginning of the session she was exhausted from pressurizing herself for a sound and concept for the album.

[11] She was entirely involved in the song's creative direction, providing additional songwriting,[2][9] and helped to develop it to represent her process of self-realization, her confidence as a young woman, and feelings of vulnerability.

[14] A fan of hip hop, Gomez felt constrained from incorporating the genre and collaborating with rappers on her previous releases due to her age and young fanbase.

[23] According to Christina Garibaldi of MTV News the snippet echoed an earlier statement Gomez made on Instagram where she said her listeners would learn the truth about what she had been experiencing on her upcoming album.

[6][51] It takes on a more stripped-down, starked, sleek, sad noir and minimalist sound,[52][53] while also comprising a mellow,[54] low-key snap-drop, hip hop drum beat[48][55][56] and a slow, R&B-like chorus.

[57] Mikael Wood of the Los Angeles Times wrote, "Rather than jack the tempo, though, Gomez here slows the beat to a woozy crawl that owes something to the pitched-down sound of recent Southern hip hop".

[49][56][58][59] The track's ambient, sparse and pitched-down production contains minor sound bursts and finger clicks,[23][48][55][56][60][61] comprising percussion instrumentation,[26] drum machines,[62] a transparent and airy synthesizer,[40][61] and minimalistic bass.

[63] Gomez solicits a slightly raspy,[57] deliberate, slow and breathy vocal in the song,[58] while making use of mumbling,[64] crooning and cooing techniques,[24][54] and a plaintive timbre.

[63] Her voice was compared to that of Imogen Heap,[40] Lana Del Rey,[49] and Lorde;[62] she clips her enunciation and breaks her vowels on words such as "good" which she phrases as "guh-eeed".

[48][72] Dee Lockett of New York described the track as Gomez's own version of Beyoncé's "Partition" (2014), a "striptease that has her both exploring and enjoying her sexuality",[73] while Rolling Stone's Rob Sheffield deemed it a "deranged obsessive Lana-like torch song about Selena dressing the part to transform herself into the girl of her dreams".

[59] Sheffield also said the track contains psychodrama reminiscent of PJ Harvey's "Dress" (1991), and wrote, "A$AP Rocky does the guest rap, but the song has nothing to do with him or any other guy — all Selena cares about is seducing the demon lover she sees in the mirror".

[60] Ryan Carey-Mahoney of USA Today said Gomez brought "fire" on the track and opined that its "uncharted new territory" may give her career a "breath of fresh air", complimenting its Midas reference.

[46] Katherine St. Asaph of Time magazine viewed the track's sad and morose sound as Gomez's strength and noted that her plaintive timbre "sells the song more than any melisma could".

[77] Joe Levy of Rolling Stone suggested that the song "may be carving out a role for [Gomez] as a pop torch singer", describing it as "moody and catchy without being obvious".

"[83] In a negative review, AllMusic's Tim Sendra said the track felt "forced and overdone", adding, "She aims for several kinds of maturity here, but in the process the music suffers".

[49] Mikael Wood of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the track's hip hop elements recalled Miley Cyrus' "We Can't Stop" (2013), and said: "No one needs reminding of how well that worked to rebrand the former Hannah Montana.

[85] Rob Markman of MTV News commended Gomez for "thinking outside of the box" for the song and specifically her collaboration with Rocky: "There are plenty of rappers [she] could've chosen from, we're just happy she picked one who can actually spit",[17] while Emmanuel C.M.

[45] Entertainment Weekly's Kevin O'Donnell placed the song at the sixth position amid the 40 best of 2015, hailing it as "blush-inducing, seductive" and describing the track as "the defining soundtrack for every late-night post-club comedown".

[67] Placing it at 30th position in a list compiling the 50 best of 2015, Rolling Stone called it "a seductive smile of a song that [won't] leave your head for the rest of the night, or the year".

[43] The video begins with Gomez lying seductively on a bright, lime-green, velvet couch;[44][57][72] wearing a loosely tied, robe-like fuchsia dress,[44][129][136] her eyes look sad and she is seemingly awaiting the arrival of her partner.

[54][130][137] Cydney Eckert of Cosmopolitan wrote, "While the video reveals a sexier side of the singer we haven't really seen since Spring Breakers, it also showcases that same confidence that allows Selena to keep standing up to body-shamers and haters".

Morgan Peterson of Harper's Bazaar said the visual saw Gomez "syncing up to her sultry new sound",[75] while MTV UK wrote that it "keeps true to the intense theme of the song".

[24][143] In a less enthusiastic review, Yasmeen Gharnit of Nylon wrote, "While there's no exact formula for how Disney stars transition into full-fledged adults, it seems like it always involves a water and sexual innuendo-filled video".

[154] Two days later, she performed the song on British talk show Alan Carr: Chatty Man,[155] singing it on French Le Grand Journal.