Sheila Dichoso of "Paste" wrote that the episode's use of the song was one of the show's "best musical moments." Jimmy Fallon parodied the song with Halloween-themed lyrics during a "Weekend Update" sketch on "Saturday Night Live". Maroon 5 released a slow, soul cover of the song as a bonus track on their album "V" (2014). "Bustle" deemed it the best song on the album and praised it for sounding different from Maroon 5's earlier work, while Idolator said the cover "is a well-executed reminder that the late '90s were, well, completely awesome." A version of "Sex and Candy" serves as the opening track of Slothrust's "Show Me How You Want It To Be" (2017), an EP of cover songs. Slothrust's arrangement of the song includes a classic rock-style guitar solo. Beth Bowles of "Exclaim!" enjoyed the cover, calling it "haunting and raw, closely comparable to the original but threaded with Slothrust's signature smoky grunge."