The single entered America's Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in November 1979 and spent 14 weeks there. It eventually peaked in the top 30, rising to number 21 by January 1980. It reached the top 20 of the Canadian RPM Country Tracks chart, peaking at number 18. "Rainy Days and Stormy Nights" received positive reception from critics. Billboard magazine named it among its "Top Single Picks" in October 1979, calling its production "catchy and uptempo", while calling Spears's vocals "soft" and "huskier than usual". In reviewing her I Will Survive album, Greg Adams of AllMusic praised it as being of the disc's track highlights.
