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Legacy
Glenn Gamboa of Newsday regarded Rhythm Nation 1814 as having "changed the way radio sounded and MTV looked." It became the best-selling album of 1990 and made history as the only album to generate seven top-five hits on the Billboard Hot 100. It is also the only album to achieve number one hits in three separate calendar years; "Miss You Much" in 1989, "Escapade" and "Black Cat" in 1990 and "Love Will Never Do (Without You)" in 1991. Richard J. Ripani, author of The New Blue Music: Changes in Rhythm & Blues, 1950-1999 (2006) describes "Rhythm Nation" as an important record, released just before the beginning of the 1990s and one which embodies the stylistic traits of New Jack Swing that dominated the airwaves for the first half of the decade. Charles Whitaker of Ebony magazine commented that Jackson was "influenced by the legacy she inherited from traditional rhythm and blues artists" and that she, Jam and Lewis "infused R&B with a variety of kinetic, electronic sounds and created 90's style dance music" noting the album's success in both the R&B and pop music charts. Ricky Vincent, author of Funk: The Music, The People, and The Rhythm of The One (1996) describes the album as "the boldest and most successful pop attempt to combine social commentary, celebration, and state-of-the-art dance funk since her brother Michael's efforts to be Bad." Entertainment Weekly's Kyle Anderson stated, "Rhythm Nation has barely aged—it sounds as rich and vital as it did when it was first released, and stylistically as contemporary as anything on the Billboard charts." Joseph Vogel of The Atlantic commented: "Twenty-five years later, those songs still pop with passion and energy [...] it’s still hard to listen and not want to join the movement."

The album notably pioneered several musical trends. Regarding its influence, Kyle Anderson stated: "The ebullient smash single 'Escapade' sounds like a building block for the turn-of-the-century teen pop craze. Any pop star who has borrowed the swagger and crunch from hair metal—Rihanna, Pink, Christina Aguilera—owes something to 'Black Cat.' Every Gwen Stefani song is essentially 'Miss You Much.' And title track 'Rhythm Nation' remains an incredibly kinetic workout that provided the DNA for everything from Lady Gaga’s 'Paparazzi' to the bulk of Beyoncé’s 4." The single edit and music video for "Alright" featuring Heavy D made Jackson the first pop artist to collaborate with a rapper, setting the trend for future pop and hip-hop collaborations and remixes. The album has been observed to influence several songs on Michael Jackson's Dangerous and HIStory albums. It also set a trend for pop albums to include various spoken interludes. Jackson's work with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis inspired Nicole Scherzinger to work with The-Dream and Tricky Stewart on her second album, Big Fat Lie. Britney Spears declared it among her favorite albums, citing it as the inspiration for her eighth album, Britney Jean. The album has been considered a predecessor to Lady Gaga's Born This Way due to its usage of industrial music and similar lyrical themes. Of Jackson's European influence, producer Jimmy Jam stated: "[it influenced] a lot of music I heard, particularly coming out of Sweden... Robyn talks all the time about the influence Janet Jackson records had on everybody there, sonically and style-wise. A lot of the music coming from Europe definitely embraced a lot of that sound and the sonic textures." It has influenced records by Kylie Minogue, Jamie Lidell, Kelela, Grimes, Louise Nurding, Karyn White Girls' Generation and TVXQ. Due to Jackson's frequent usage of industrial rhythms, Trent Reznor had stated mainstream industrial music "sounds like a Janet Jackson record." Additionally, Rhythm Nation 1814 has gained a notable following within indie rock and alternative music. Acts such as Sleigh Bells,  Amy Lee of Evanescence and Lzzy Hale of Halestorm have cited it as inspiration. It has also been called an influence by Lissie, A Sunny Day in Glasgow, and St. Vincent, who praised Jackson's vocal arrangements.

Rolling Stone observed Jackson's "Rhythm Nation" video to "set the template for hundreds of videos to come in the Nineties and aughts." Speaking on its influence in show choir performances, Sweat, Tears, and Jazz Hands: The Official History of Show Choir from Vaudeville to Glee (2011) wrote the video which was "praised for its probing lyrics and video and production innovation, made [Jackson] a recognized and respected dancer and performer in the industry. Janet Jackson and her crew's innovative, one-of-a-kind, funk-and-groove choreography was unlike anything seen in the history of pop music." Its popularity was declared "its own pop cultural phenomenon," as it became "legendary," "groundbreaking," and "instantly recognizable." Jackson's "Rhythm Nation" outfit had set global fashion trends, later being abducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the song's lyrics. Beyoncé stated, "I used to dress up like her. [...] I had the lipstick, had the hair — even had some leather boots." Jennifer Love Hewitt commented, "after I saw Janet Jackson's "Rhythm Nation" video, I went and cut it off and got a perm and had like three-inch bangs sticking out from my forehead." Artists such as Cheryl Cole and Rihanna have also paid homage to the outfit. The headset microphone was notably brought to prominence by Jackson throughout the Control and Rhythm Nation eras. Entertainers such as Will Ferrell, Jennifer Aniston, Alex Wagner, Pink, Liz Phair, and Thunderheist have referred to it as the "Janet Jackson headset mic" or headpiece.

Following the album's success, Jackson "ended the decade as a massive global superstar." Stan Hawkins stated the album "helped secure Jackson a position on par with Madonna." Sal Cinquemani noted her popularity to eclipse Michael Jackson's, "as she would continue to do for more than a decade." The success of the album has been considered to break racial boundaries in the recording industry. Joseph Vogel stated, "Just seven years earlier, black artists couldn’t get on MTV; FM radio was dominated by album-oriented (white) rock; and the music industry was largely segregated by genre. Now a black woman was at the helm of a new pop-cultural “nation,” preaching liberation through music and dance, while calling on her audience to keep up the struggle." Recalling Jackson's diverse appeal among youth, Vogel commented: "Janet didn’t have the vocal prowess of Whitney Houston, or the poetic subtlety of Kate Bush; she didn’t have Annie Lennox’s penchant for the avant-garde or Madonna’s predilection for shock. But none of these artists achieved the cross-racial impact (particularly on youth culture) of Janet. And none of them had an album like Rhythm Nation 1814."