It reached No. 13 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 28 on the Billboard Hot 100.
The single was band's first to make the US Top 40 since 1984's "People Are People", and was their first gold-certified single in the US.
In Germany, "Personal Jesus" is one of the band's longest-charting songs, staying on the singles chart for 23 weeks.
In 2004, "Personal Jesus" was ranked No. 368 in Rolling Stone's list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time"
In September 2006 it was voted as one of the "100 Greatest Songs Ever" in Q magazine.