"Everytime" received universal acclaim from music critics, who praised its lyrics, composition, and Spears' breathy vocals and songwriting, deeming it amongst the highlights of In the Zone.

Commercially, it became a global success, topping the charts in five countries, including Australia and the United Kingdom, and reached the top-ten in 16 other markets.

The song has been covered by artists like Glen Hansard, Ethel Cain, Kelly Clarkson, Lewis Capaldi, and James Franco in the 2013 film Spring Breakers.

Inspired by the cinematography of the 1995 film Leaving Las Vegas, the accompanying music video for "Everytime" was directed by David LaChapelle.

The original concept had Spears kill herself from a drug overdose, but that part of the plot was removed after it received criticism from organizations such as Kidscape, who perceived it as a glamorization of suicide.

Critics took note of the video for its religious references to The Passion of the Christ, Kabbalah and stigmata, as well as for foreshadowing Spears' own struggles with fame.

Jennifer Vineyard of MTV compared the song lyrically to another ballad from In the Zone, "Shadow", since they both speak "about how reminders of a lover can still linger after he's gone.

[13] "Everytime" received widespread acclaim from music critics, who complimented its lyrical content and Spears' breathy vocals, while others deemed it a standout track on In the Zone.

[14] Gavin Mueller of Stylus Magazine considered "Everytime" to be the best track on In the Zone, explaining "it is just a spare piano ballad, simple yet effectively fragile".

[15] Ali Fenwick of The Johns Hopkins News-Letter complimented Spears' songwriting and added the song "shows a glimmer of the talent that hides behind the robotic, synthed-out vocals on the rest of the album".

[19] Nayer Nissim, from Pink News, wrote that "despite some limp efforts scattered around her albums, Britney can actually do some utterly compelling and heartbreaking ballads, and this is her very best.

[20] Digital Spy's Alim Kheraj praised its "lullaby-like production, wonderfully simple piano riff and confessional lyrics".

[21] For Alex Macpherson from The Guardian, it's one of the best examples of Spears' "distressing vulnerability" as well as her fifth best song; "one of Britney's oddest curveballs was following the gleaming banger 'Toxic', with its polar opposite.

[22] Spence D. of IGN said the song "continues to mine the Zone turf and unleashes what is ostensibly Britney's first mature ballad, at least in terms of being musically staid and stripped of any danceteria sweat and gloss".

[24] David Browne of Entertainment Weekly commented, "With its dainty piano, 'Everytime' plays like a forlorn postmortem on her Justin Timberlake era.

[28] A reviewer from the Huddersfield Daily Examiner stated, "[the] breathy ballad [has] got a stage musical feel to it, but Britney's no Elaine Paige".

MTV News' "You Tell Us" received numerous letters from upset viewers, who criticized Spears, saying they perceived the ending as a glamorization of suicide.

On March 12, 2004, Spears announced through her label that she had removed the concept, "due to the potential for a fictional accidental occurrence to be misinterpreted as a suicide".

An alternate version of the video which only features Spears singing in the white hallway scenes was released on the 2004 DVD Greatest Hits: My Prerogative.

[47] The video begins with an aerial shot of Las Vegas, showing the Palms Casino Resort and continues with a shot of a marquee hotel that reads "Britney Spears Live from Miami The Onyx Hotel Tour Las Vegas", with a picture of Spears holding a leather strap and referencing her Showtime concert special from Miami.

The music video ends with her rising from under the water, resting her head and smiling, suggesting the whole scene of her death was a dream or a morbid fantasy.

[48] Dominic Fox commented, "Even in its bowdlerised form, the 'Everytime' video presents a moment of existential indecision, a fugue of suicidal ideation in which the singer fantasises about her own death".

[54] On October 18, 2003, "Everytime" was performed by Spears for the first time during the twenty-ninth season of the American comedy show Saturday Night Live.

After a Bollywood-inspired performance of "Me Against the Music" from In the Zone, Spears sat on a giant umbrella in the middle of the stage and briefly talked to the audience.

[65] American pop rock singer Sally Maer also covered "Everytime" to release it on her studio album Bed of Roses (2008).

[citation needed] On July 27, 2012, Kelly Clarkson covered the song during the Las Vegas stop of her summer tour, as an audience request.

[69] "Everytime" was also covered on the American series Glee episode "Britney 2.0" by the character Marley Rose (played by Melissa Benoist).

The girls are wearing My Little Pony ski masks, sparkly pink tiger bathing suits, sweatpants with "DTF" on the rear and shotguns in their hands.

"[70]A Mandarin Chinese version of "Everytime", titled "Don't Say Sorry", was recorded by Taiwanese girl group S.H.E for their 2004 studio album Encore.

[74][75] On March 8, 2022, American singer-songwriter Ethel Cain released a cover as part of Spotify Singles, in observance of International Women's Day.