A video was recorded specially for Soft Cell's video album Non-Stop Exotic Video Show, directed by Tim Pope and featuring David Ball as a cricketer meeting Marc Almond in a toga on what seems to be Mount Olympus.
In 1996, director Spike Jonze used Soft Cell's version of the song in a television commercial for Levi's jeans, titled "Doctors", syncing the song to the sound of a heart rate monitor in a hospital. The television commercial was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Commercial at the 49th Primetime Emmy Awards the following year.
In 2013, Soft Cell's version of "Tainted Love" ranked number five on VH1's 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 1980s. It was also heavily sampled on Rihanna's 2006 single "SOS" from her album A Girl Like Me and the Veronicas' 2007 single "Hook Me Up" from their album Hook Me Up. In 2015, the song was voted by the British public as the nation's fourth favourite 1980s number one in a poll for ITV. In 2022, Rolling Stone ranked "Tainted Love" number 170 with "Where Did Our Love Go" in their list of the "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time".
Tainted Love '91
A re-recorded version, titled "Tainted Love '91", was issued in 1991, seven years after Soft Cell's dissolution in 1984, as a tie-in to the compilation album Memorabilia – The Singles (which reached number eight in the UK Albums Chart in June 1991). "Tainted Love '91" was a follow-up to "Say Hello, Wave Goodbye '91", which was another re-recorded/remixed version of an earlier single from the Soft Cell/Marc Almond compilation. "Tainted Love '91" became another top-40 hit from the collection and peaked at number five in the UK charts, making it Soft Cell's sixth top-10 hit (as records with re-recorded vocals were seen as a new hit by the chart compilers of the time)
The video for this version, directed by Peter Christopherson, features a man pacing at night and dancing with starry apparitions, while Almond sings amongst the stars. Christopherson's band Coil had covered "Tainted Love" in 1985, with a music video that included a cameo appearance by Almond.
Charts
Weekly charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|-
!scope="col"| Chart (1981–1982)
!scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
!scope="row"|Australia (Kent Music Report)
| 1
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"|Canada Top Singles (RPM)
| 1
|-
!scope="row"|France (SNEP)
| 4
|-
!scope="row"|Ireland (IRMA)
| 4
|-
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"|South Africa (Springbok Radio)
| 1
|-
!scope="row"|Spain (AFYVE)
| 4
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC)
| 1
|-
!scope="row"|US Billboard Hot 100
| 8
|-
!scope="row"|US Disco Top 80 (Billboard)<br/>
| 4
|-
!scope="row"|US Rock Top Tracks (Billboard)
| 12
|-
|}
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|-
!scope="col"| Chart (1985)
!scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
!scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC)
| 5
|-
!scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC)
| 14
|-
!scope="row"|UK Dance (Music Week)
| 30
|}
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|-
!scope="col"| Chart (1999)
!scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
!scope="row"|US Dance Club Play (Billboard)
| 24
|-
!scope="row"|US Maxi-Singles Sales (Billboard)
| 6
|}
Year-end charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|-
!scope="col"| Chart (1981)
!scope="col"| Position
|-
!scope="row"|Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)
| 28
|-
!scope="row"|Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)
| 58
|-
!scope="row"|Netherlands (Single Top 100)
| 49
|-
!scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC)
| 2
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|-
!scope="col"| Chart (1982)
!scope="col"| Position
|-
!scope="row"|Australia (Kent Music Report)
| 3
|-
!scope="row"|Canada Top Singles (RPM)
| 7
|-
!scope="row"|New Zealand (RIANZ)
|14
|-
!scope="row"|South Africa (Springbok Radio)
| 5
|-
!scope="row"|US Billboard Hot 100
| 11
|-
!scope="row"|West Germany (Media Control)
| 35
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|-
!scope="col"| Chart (1991)
!scope="col"| Position
|-
!scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC)
| 82
|}
Certifications
==Marilyn Manson version==<!-- This section is linked from Marilyn Manson (band), Marilyn Manson discography#Singles and List of awards and nominations received by Marilyn Manson -->
American rock band Marilyn Manson covered "Tainted Love" with an arrangement based on Soft Cell's version. It was released in November 2001 as a single from the Not Another Teen Movie soundtrack. The accompanying music video featured cast members Chyler Leigh, Mia Kirshner, Chris Evans and Jaime Pressly. It was later included as a bonus track on international editions of the band's following album, The Golden Age of Grotesque in 2003. Manson said that he was not "really thinking about '80s nostalgia" during the recording, while recognizing it as a main concept behind the soundtrack.
"Tainted Love" topped the charts in Portugal and peaked within the top ten of the charts in the United Kingdom. and won the Kerrang! Award for Best Video. It was also nominated for Best Video at the 2002 Q Awards.
Charts
Weekly charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
|-
!scope="col"| Chart (2001–2002)
!scope="col"| Peak<br />position
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"|Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)
| 1
|-
|-
|-
|-
|-
!scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC)
| 5
|-
!scope="row"|US Mainstream Rock Tracks (Billboard)
| 30
|-
!scope="row"|US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)
| 33
|}
Year-end charts
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|-
!scope="col"| Chart (2002)
!scope="col"| Position
|-
! scope="row"| Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)
| 18
|-
! scope="row"| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)
| 55
|-
! scope="row"| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)
| 17
|-
! scope="row"| Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)
| 25
|-
! scope="row"| Germany (Media Control)
| 24
|-
! scope="row"| Ireland (IRMA)
| 77
|-
! scope="row"| Italy (FIMI)
| 16
|-
! scope="row"| Sweden (Hitlistan)
| 37
|-
! scope="row"| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)
| 19
|-
! scope="row"| UK Singles (OCC)
| 65
|}
Certifications
Release history
{|class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
!scope="col"|Region
!scope="col"|Date
!scope="col"|Format(s)
!scope="col"|Label(s)
!scope="col"|
|-
!scope="row"|United States
|November 13, 2001
|
|rowspan="2"|
|
|-
!scope="row"|United Kingdom
|March 18, 2002
|rowspan="2"|CD
|
|-
!scope="row"|Japan
|May 9, 2002
|Maverick
|
|}