Prior to the release of "Focus", Grande started teasing snippets of the song during the last shows of The Honeymoon Tour in October 2015. Grande performed "Focus" live for the first time on the Honda Stage at the iHeartRadio Theater in Los Angeles on October 30, 2015. She also performed the song at the 2015 American Music Awards on November 22, ranked by "Billboard" as the best performance of the night. According to Bruna Nessif of "E!", Grande brought some "old Hollywood glamour" to the performance. Grande performed "Focus" and a cover of ”Merry Christmas (War is Over)” on Disney's Christmas Day special. The song was also performed on the Dangerous Woman Tour in 2017 starting with the second leg in Europe.