Box office Booksmart grossed $22.7 million in the United States and Canada, and $2.2 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $24.9 million. In the United States and Canada,
Booksmart was released alongside
Aladdin and
Brightburn, and was projected to gross around $12 million from 2,505 theaters in its four-day
opening weekend. The film made $2.5 million on its first day, including $875,000 from Thursday night previews. It ended up underperforming, debuting to just $6.9 million (a four-day total of $8.7 million), finishing in sixth place. Industry publications insisted that although the targeted young female demographic did turn out to the film, it should have begun with a
limited release and expanded, similar to the R-rated, female-led high school comedy
Lady Bird in 2017, and that
Booksmart failed to stand out in the crowded marketplace. The film's largest market outside North America was the
United Kingdom, where it grossed around US$1.8 million (£1.5 million) after seven weeks in theaters. Director
J. J. Abrams asked: "When you have a movie that's as entertaining, well-made, and well-received as
Booksmart not doing the business it should have [the teen comedy underperforming at the box office despite critics' raves], it really makes you realize that the typical
Darwinian fight to survive is completely lopsided now. Everyone's trying to figure out how we protect the smaller films that aren't four-quadrant mega-releases. Can they exist in the cinema?"
Critical response On review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of based on reviews, with an average rating of . The website's critics consensus reads, "Fast-paced, funny, and fresh,
Booksmart does the seemingly impossible by adding a smart new spin to the coming-of-age comedy." On
Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 84 out of 100, based on 52 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". Audiences polled by
CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale, while those at
PostTrak gave it an overall positive score of 80%. Peter Debruge of
Variety praised the ensemble cast as well as Wilde's direction, calling the film "the best high school buddy comedy since
Superbad". John DeFore of
The Hollywood Reporter called the film a "hilarious, blazingly paced teen comedy." Writing for the
Chicago Sun-Times,
Richard Roeper gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, calling it a "refreshingly original take on the raunchy coming-of-age comedy" and praising Feldstein and Dever's chemistry. Alissa Wilkinson of
Vox awarded the film a score of four out of five, writing that the "memorably relatable"
Booksmart is also a "delightful reminder that growing up is about realizing nobody's a stereotype". Linda Holmes of
NPR gave an especially favorable review, calling the film "a humane and heartfelt film without a mean bone in its figurative body".
Vultures
Emily Yoshida also favorably wrote that it "manages to be inclusive and progressive, without being precious about anything or sacrificing an ounce of humor".
A. O. Scott of
The New York Times regarded the film as "sharp but not mean, warm without feeling too soft or timid", and referring to Feldstein and Dever as "a classic comedy duo".
Joe Morgenstern of
The Wall Street Journal deemed
Booksmart a "prodigy", stating that no film that was "funnier, smarter, quicker or more joyous has graced the big screen in a long time."
Accolades Booksmart was included on 68 critics' top-ten lists, and on two lists was ranked in first place. In 2021, members of
Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) and
Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) voted its screenplay 69th in WGA's 101 Greatest Screenplays of the 21st Century (so far). In 2025, it was one of the films voted for the "Readers' Choice" edition of
The New York Times list of "The 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century," finishing at number 309. ==Notes==