[6] Upon its release as a single in the US, Cash Box praised "One to One" as an "affecting plea to a socially conscious (and active) lover to keep it 'one to one'" and felt it shows Jackson to be "a romanticist deep at heart".

"[8] A reviewer for the Evening Chronicle described it as a "slowish, angular song with clever lyrics and piano backing", but added they "much prefer the B-side".

[9] Paul Walker of the Sandwell Evening Mail considered it a "good song" from an "excellent artist", but added it was "not distinctive enough" and felt Jackson would be better releasing new material than further tracks from Beat Crazy.

He described the song as "a low key, slightly disturbing lament which leans on a finely chiselled piano figure and tells its story of a relationship devoured by slogans".

[11] Rosalind Russell of Record Mirror wrote, "Joe's conscience is getting a bit too heavy for us all to carry [and] his preoccupation with the deeper meanings of life is becoming tiresome.