Billboard Hot 100 and has become a staple of classic rock radio; it also reached number one on the Canadian Singles Chart.

[3] He said, "Again, that's going back to the 'Night Moves' situation where I was writing about my high school years in Ann Arbor and what it was like — the discovery, the total naivete and fresh–faced openness that I went through.

"[5]Ultimate Classic Rock critic Jed Gottlieb cites "Mainstreet" as an example of Seger's love for "beautiful losers".

[6] He notes that Seger sings about a "dancer in a downtown dive" rather than the waitresses, prom queens, or college girls who would be the subject of other singers' songs.

[6] And he notes that unlike in their songs, the singer doesn't try to save or run away with the girl, but is content to just watch her walk on by him.

[7] Cash Box compared it to "Night Moves" saying that "this haunting ballad hits home with the same emotive chording, expressive vocalization and dramatic close.

[11] Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section Cash Box called the song a "haunting ballad" that "hits home with the same emotive chording, expressive vocalization and dramatic close" as "Night Moves".

[12] VH1's Mike McPadden selected "Mainstreet" as one of Seger's 10 most essential songs, describing it as "sad, sweet, soulful, and even spooky" for how it evokes the emotions of a hopeful but frustrated young man watching a woman he is too scared to approach.