Bruno Mars performed the song at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City on August 25, 2010, with him and his four-piece band dressed in blue tuxedos and black skinny ties. John Macdonald for "Spin" said "Despite a couple pitch problems here and there, Mars proved to be nearly as good a performer as he is a songwriter". Mars performed the song on "Saturday Night Live" on October 9, 2010. The song was performed at "The Ellen DeGeneres Show", on October 14, 2010. A soulful arrangement of the song was sung for a "Billboard" Tastemakers video session, on October 22, 2010. An acoustic version of the song was performed at "Grammy Nominations" concert in 2010 for the 53rd Grammy Awards. Mars also played the song live at the BBC Radio 1Xtra Live Lounge and at the "NBA All-Star Tip Off Pre-Show" in January and February 2011, respectively. The song was also performed on "NBC's Today Show" on June 24, 2011. A live performance was also done on the French "X Factor" during the finale of the second season. Carolina Frost for the Huffington Post said that Mars at the 2012 Brit Awards "took his poptastic song Just the Way You Are, and gave it a fresh jazzy arrangement." While Tweeter David Quantick summed up his opinion, asking if "someone came as a spare Osmond". Others praised Mars's vocality and confidence with his soulful rendition.