Mark Braxton of "Radio Times" awarded the serial three stars out of five, praising the introduction of Baker and Marter, as well as the K1 concept. However, he felt that the villains were stereotypical and wrote that "Robot" "boasts perhaps the show's worst visual effect ever". IGN reviewer Arnold Blumburg gave the story a rating of 7 out of 10, attributing its success to Baker. He too criticised the effects, feeling that it made the story " when trying to present an epic conclusion". DVD Talk's Nick Lyons wrote that it "may not be the most original episode, but it is one of the stronger episodes of the Baker years simply because it never drags and is a breezy action-adventure. It doesn't hurt that the robot itself is a nifty villain". He gave the serial three and a half out of five stars. In 2010, "SFX" named the scene where the Doctor tries on many different costumes as one of the silliest moments in the show's history.