"Everytime" was one of the first songs finished for "In the Zone", previewed on May 30, 2003, to Quddus Philippe of MTV at Battery Studios in New York City. It was registered with the U.S. Copyright Office on April 26, 2003 under the title of "Everytime I Try" and SRU000530591 registration number with a given recording year of 2002. Spears named it the most personal song on the album along with "Touch of My Hand", explaining, "It's one of the songs that when you hear, it's like the kind of song when you go to heaven. It kind of takes you away. You know, it takes you in to a very cool consciousness I think."