"[3] Cheap Trick biographers Mike Hayes and Ken Sharp describe the song as "a magnificent tour-de-force, characterized by an addictively infectious chorus and jarring bursts of dissonance.

[2] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Dave Swanson similarly stated that "From the in-your-face power chord riff to Tom Petersson's surging bass lines, it is a tour de force".

[3] Swanson also points out that the strings play a similar role on "Dream Police" as the synthesizer did on Cheap Trick's earlier song "Surrender" and the Who's "Baba O'Riley.

[7] Dave Marsh of Rolling Stone described the song as a "trash thriller like John Carpenter's Halloween," and also noted that it is "nearly as good as the earlier ones in which Cheap Trick used similar stylistic devices.

"[8] Classic Rock critic Malcolm Dome rated it as Cheap Trick's 3rd greatest song, calling it "a breezy high point of late 70s power pop.

"[9] Classic Rock History critic Michael Quinn also rated it Cheap Trick's 3rd best song, calling it a "perfect example of 70s power pop" and saying that it "features an incredible instrumental build-up exploding into the final chorus.

[16][17] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Dave Swanson rated it as the #5 Rick Nielson Cheap Trick song, calling it "a haunting, psychedelic wonder" and saying that the "cello, harpsichord, and mandocello...help create a surreal, dreamlike sound.