DJBooth's Nathan Slavik gave praise to tracks like "Hell Yeah" and "Brand New" for having the kind of "feel good vibes" that work best for Joc than being on either side of "straight hardcore" ("Cut Throat") or "family-friendly" ("Coffee Shop"). He later called "Hustlenomics" "a decent album that tries so hard to please everyone it loses its own identity. If Joc and Bad Boy are hustlers selling hip-hop, what does that make anyone who buys his album? I'm not hating, I just can’t shake the feeling I'm being hustled." "PopMatters" contributor Josh Timmermann felt that Joc was a "marginally talented, deeply generic rapper" throughout the record and gave credit to the various producers and featured artists for elevating the material, saying "f this album proves nothing else, it’s that the formula still works: hire A-list producers and guest rappers, and you're all but guaranteed a passable hip-hop record."