"Poses" debuted at No. 117 on the "Billboard" 200, and Wainwright ranked No. 1 on "Billboard" magazine's Top Heatseekers chart. He won the Outstanding Music Album award at the 2002 GLAAD Media Awards, and at the Juno Awards of 2002 was nominated for Best Songwriter and took home the award for Best Alternative Album. Several years following its release, "Poses" was certified gold by the Canadian Recording Industry Association and included on "Mojo"'s "100 Modern Classics" list and on "Out" magazine's "100 Greatest, Gayest Albums" list.