Its lyrics delve into the singer's attempts to forget her previous boyfriend through substance abuse, drinking and other hedonistic practices.
The track peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States and became the highest-charting song by a Swedish artist on that chart since "The Sign" by Ace of Base peaked at number one in 1994.
The song has been covered by artists such as Vin Diesel, whose performance was a tribute to his late friend Paul Walker, and Kelly Clarkson, who performed the track on her Piece by Piece Tour (2015).
Rolling Stone ranked the recording at number 23 on their list of the 50 Best songs of 2014 and compared the song's production to that of Lorde's music and the lyrics to those of Kesha's songs.
Caitlin White of Noisey said that the "new video for 'Habits' shows the darker side of coping with a lost love" and that it "may remind you of Janis Joplin a bit".