Grande worked with numerous producers on Positions, including frequent collaborator Tommy Brown, accompanied by longtime co-writers Victoria Monét and Tayla Parx.

[1] Built around themes of sexual intimacy, attraction, and romantic devotion, Positions expands on the trap-infused R&B and pop sound of its predecessors, Sweetener (2018) and Thank U, Next (2019).

Doja Cat, the Weeknd, and Ty Dolla $ign appear as guest features, alongside Megan Thee Stallion on the deluxe edition.

It spent two consecutive weeks at number one in the country, was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, and became the eighth most consumed album of 2021 in the US.

Positions contended for Best Pop Vocal Album at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards (2022); Grande tied Kelly Clarkson for the most nominations for an act in the category, with five each.

[27] "Six Thirty" sees Grande "[shatter] established language norms and creates a new metaphor paradigm, comparing a person to a very specific hour of the day as represented on a clock".

[28] Vulture's Rachel Handler described "My Hair" as "a witty, clever little ditty about reassuring an uneasy lover that it is, indeed, okay to touch Ariana Grande's almost frighteningly giant ponytail.

[30] The title track, "Positions", is a mid-tempo, "slinky" pop-R&B song over a trap beat, violins, and guitars played in the pizzicato technique.

It remained at the top position for seven consecutive weeks there, becoming Grande's longest running number one single on the pop airplay chart, surpassing "7 Rings".

[65] Louise Bruton of The Irish Times labeled Positions a "big orgy of breathless R&B songs" that solidify Grande as one of pop music's leading voices, despite the scarcity of "bangers".

[14] Mary Siroky of Consequence of Sound detailed the album as "showy", "wildly theatrical", filled with romance and flirtation, establishing a blend of Dangerous Woman (2016), Sweetener (2018) and Thank U, Next (2019), while dismissing the guest appearances as its weakest songs.

"[66] Vulture's Craig Jenkins appreciated the "effortless" vocals, and pinpointed how the album is "risqué and unsubtle" in nature, but underlined its safe formula and presence of filler tracks.

[67] Hannah Mylrea of NME affirmed that Positions is "jaw-droppingly good fun", however, observed that the washy melodies result in indistinct songs, deficit of Grande's "trademark sparkle".

[68] The Telegraph's Kate Solomon described it as "sultry sexjams and thinly veiled euphemisms" with X-rated lyrics, softened by Disneyfied strings, but despite the singer shining new confidence, Positions "doesn't quite hit the spot".

[69] The Independent writer Adam White highlighted the album's push-and-pull dynamic, but felt the singer sticks to her comfort zone, and noted that Positions has "Spotify syndrome"—short songs to aid playlisting.

[18] David Smyth of Evening Standard praised Grande's voice as "a thing of great beauty", but remarked that she "isn't firing as hard as she was when she released her last two albums".

[70] Alexis Petridis of The Guardian concluded that the album proceeds at a tiring pace, causing the individual tracks blur into "one long slow-motion shot", without a climax.

[17] Naming Positions a misstep in Grande's career, The Fader's Shaad D'Souza denounced its conversational style of vocals, "low-effort" lyrics and trend-chasing production.

[71] Calling it a product of pandemic fatigue, Alexa Camp of Slant Magazine wrote that Positions leans on "the same midtempo trap-pop" that were on Grande's previous albums, and criticized the lyricism for its "empty" pillow talk and repetitive hooks.

Additionally, some of its tracks were also named amongst best songs of 2020: "Positions",[73] "34+35",[74] "POV",[75] "Just like Magic",[76] "Nasty",[77] "My Hair",[78] "Motive",[78] "Love Language",[78] "Six Thirty",[79] and "Off the Table".

[79] Positions debuted at number-one on the US Billboard 200 chart, with 174,000 album-equivalent units, which included 173.54 million on-demand streams and 42,000 album sales, in its first week.

At the time of its release, Positions achieved the highest one-week total for an album since bundles and concert ticket offers stopped factoring into chart and sales rankings (October 9, 2020).

[96] All 14 tracks of Positions charted simultaneously within the top 75 of the US Billboard Hot 100, issue dated November 14, 2020, becoming Grande's second consecutive album to do so, following Thank U, Next (12 songs).

[98] Following the release of the deluxe version, Positions ascended to the second spot of the Billboard 200 on the chart dated March 6, 2021, moving 49,000 units in its seventeenth week.

[105] Overall, Positions landed at number eight on the Billboard 200 year-end chart for 2021, while being the third-biggest album amongst female artists, behind Olivia Rodrigo's Sour and Taylor Swift's Evermore.