Following Houston's death in 2012, "Entertainment Weekly" published a list of her 25 best songs and ranked "Didn't We Almost Have it All" at 16. It debuted at number forty one on the Hot 100 the week of August 22, 1987 and six weeks later reached number one. "Didn't We Almost Have It All" reached number one on the "Billboard" Hot 100 for two weeks, from September 26 to October 3, 1987, where the song became her fifth consecutive number one. The song also topped both component charts, the Hot 100 Singles Sales and Hot 100 Airplay, Houston's fourth song (and fourth consecutive release) to do so. The single stayed in the Top 40 for 13 weeks, and topped the Adult Contemporary chart for three weeks. It also reached number two on the Hot Black Singles chart for one week (October 10, 1987), behind "(You're Puttin') A Rush on Me" by Stephanie Mills. Internationally, the song hit the top ten in several markets, and reached the top 20 in the United Kingdom (#14); Switzerland (#18); and Germany (#20). "Didn't We Almost Have It All" was ranked 22nd on the "Billboard" Hot 100 year-end charts (1987), and remained in the "Billboard" Hot 100 for 17 weeks. It was her fifth number one single on the "Billboard" Hot 100, her fourth on the Hot 100 Singles Sales chart, her fourth on the Hot 100 Airplay, and her fifth on the Adult Contemporary chart.