In 1989, "Skylarking" was listed at number 48 on "Rolling Stone" magazine's list of the 100 greatest albums of the 1980s. The staff at "Pitchfork Media" placed the album at 15 on their 2002 list of the "Top 100 Albums of the 1980s". Site contributor Dominique Leone felt that Rundgren's production added warmth to the band's "clever-but-distant" songs. "Slant Magazine" listed the album at 67 on its list of the "Best Albums of the 1980s", It was voted number 830 in Colin Larkin's "All Time Top 1000 Albums" (2000).