Dennis Perkins of "The A.V. Club" gave the episode a score of C- and said that "'Better Off Ned' isn’t just a lousy half-hour (minus commercials, minus three episode-ending tags in place of any sort of resolution) of The Simpsons because it’s double-dipping on the same premise. It’s a truly lousy episode because it fairly rings with indifference, glib cruelty, and enough lamp-shading of creative exhaustion to serve as platonic ideal for late-run ‘is that show still on?’ disposability." "Den of Geek" gave the episode a 3 out of 5 stars and says "'Better Off Ned' is sweet but feels like a doughnut where the creamy middle has been sucked out. It doesn’t quite miss the edge as much as it dulls it. The opportunities are here for sharper comedy, but the episode cuts across the surface."