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"Womanizer" is the lead single from Britney Spears' sixth studio album, Circus. It was released on September 26, 2008, by Jive Records as the lead single of the album. Produced and written by The Outsyders, the song was re-recorded after a snippet was leaked onto the internet. "Womanizer" is an up-tempo electropop and dance-pop song. Described by Spears as a girl's anthem, the song's lyrics recall a womanizing man, while the protagonist of the song makes clear she knows who he really is.
"Womanizer" received critical acclaim with critics mostly praising its hook, melody, and empowering lyrics. Critics also observed it as a stand-out track from the album, while some deemed it a comeback single for Spears. It became a major global success, peaking atop the charts in Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Norway, Sweden, and the United States. It also reached the top ten in every country it charted in also received several certifications from several countries. In the United States, "Womanizer" was her first single to reach number one since "…Baby One More Time" in 1999. The song broke the record for the highest jump to number one at a time which was later broken by Kelly Clarkson's "My Life Would Suck Without You" in 2009. It is also her best-selling digital song in the country, having sold over 3.5 million copies. The song received a nomination for Best Dance Recording at the 52nd Grammy Awards, becoming her second nomination in the category.
The music video, directed by Joseph Kahn, was created by Spears as a sequel to the music video of "Toxic". It portrays Spears as a woman who disguises herself in different costumes and follows her boyfriend through his daily activities to expose him in the end. The video also contains interspersed scenes of Spears naked in a steam room, as a response to the attacks she had received over the years about her weight. The video was also nominated for two categories at the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards and won Best Pop Video.
The song has been covered by a number of artists from different genres, including Lily Allen, Franz Ferdinand, and Girls Aloud. Spears performed "Womanizer" on several television shows including The X Factor and Good Morning America, as well as award shows such as the 2008 Bambi Awards. She has also performed the song at The Circus Starring Britney Spears, the Femme Fatale Tour, and Britney: Piece of Me.
In the United States, the song entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number ninety-six on the issue dated October 18, 2008. The following week, the song jumped to number one breaking the records for the largest jump to number one and largest jump to any position in the history of the chart, previously held by T.I.'s "Live Your Life" (feat. Rihanna) and Beyoncé and Shakira's "Beautiful Liar", respectively. The record was later broken by Kelly Clarkson's "My Life Would Suck Without You". It also garnered first-week download sales of 286,000, the biggest opening-week tally by a female artist since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking digital downloads in 2003, surpassing the record previously held by Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body". The record was broken on January 27, 2010, with Taylor Swift's "Today Was a Fairytale". "Womanizer" was Spears' first number-one single since her debut "…Baby One More Time" in 1999. On the week of January 3, 2009, the song reached number one on the Billboard Pop Songs and number six on Radio Songs. As of July 2009, "Womanizer" was listed at number thirty-nine in the best-selling digital songs of all time, with sales of over 2,777,600. As of March 2015, "Womanizer" has sold 3.5 million digital downloads in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. It is Spears' best-selling digital single in the country.
In Canada, the single topped the Canadian Hot 100 on October 18, 2008, and stayed in that position for five consecutive weeks. "Womanizer" entered the Australian charts on October 13, 2008, at number sixteen. Three weeks later, it peaked at number five. It shipped over 70,000 copies, earning a platinum certification from the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). In New Zealand, the song peaked at number nine on October 27, 2008. The song was certified gold according to the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ), selling over 7,500 copies. The track debuted at number four in the United Kingdom on November 9, 2008, and reached its peak position of number three-four weeks later. On January 16, 2009, it was certified silver by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), with sales of over 200,000 copies. According to The Official Charts Company, the song has sold 447,000 copies there. "Womanizer" reached a peak in a number of European countries, including Belgium (Flanders), Denmark, Finland, France, Norway, and Sweden. It also reached the top ten in Austria, Belgium (Wallonia), the Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the Netherlands. In addition, the track became Spears' sixth European number-one single. As of May 2020, "Womanizer" has generated over 202 million streams in the US.
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