Upon its release, "The Score" was a commercial success, peaking at the number one spot on both the "Billboard" 200, and the Top R&B/Hip-hop Albums chart (it was a number one album on the latter in 1996 on the year-end chart). The singles "Killing Me Softly", "Fu-Gee-La", and "Ready or Not" also achieved notable chart success, and helped the group achieve worldwide recognition. As of February 2021, "The Score" has been certified seven times platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). With an estimated 22 million copies sold worldwide, the album has become one of the best-selling albums of all time, and is the best selling album by a hip hop group. In addition to receiving mostly favorable reviews upon its release, "The Score" has garnered a considerable amount of acclaim over the years, with many music critics and publications noting it as one of the greatest albums of the 1990s, as well as one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time. In 1998, "The Score" was included in "The Source"'s 100 best rap albums list, and in 2020, the album was ranked number 134 on "Rolling Stone" magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. "The Score" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, becoming the second rap album to receive a nomination and the first for a hip hop group, while winning the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album, along with Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for "Killing Me Softly" at the 39th Annual Grammy Awards.