The Guardian reviewer Alexis Petridis rated the album 3 out of 5 stars, stating that "you'd have a hard time arguing that What Makes You Country doesn't feature some pretty bulletproof songwriting. If it sounds like mainstream pop in a pickup truck, that's partly because the melodies and structure are up to the standard of the best stuff pumped out by Swedish hit manufacturers."[2] A mixed-to-positive review came from Variety writer Chris Willman, who wrote that the album "suggests that Bryan has zero interest in fixing what ain't broke. It's a 15-song guidebook to What Makes Him Successful, filled with good-time drinking, better-time sex, a little bit of family, and no particular sadness that can't be cured as soon as a certain ex-girlfriend texts back."[3]
What Makes You Country debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with 108,000 album-equivalent units, of which 99,000 were pure album sales in its first week, giving Bryan his fourth US number-one album.[4] On March 6, 2019, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined sales and album-equivalent units of over 500,000 units in the United States.[5] As of April 2019, the album has sold 363,700 copies in the United States.[6]
In Australia, the album entered at number six on the ARIA Albums Chart, becoming his second to reach the top 10 there after Kill the Lights (2015).[7]
