In a 2010 poll to find the "10 Best George Harrison Songs", AOL Radio listeners voted "What Is Life" third, behind "My Sweet Lord" and "Blow Away". In a "Rolling Stone" readers' poll, titled "10 Greatest Solo Beatle Songs", the song placed fourth, with the editor commenting: "The track is deceptively simple, and more layers become apparent the more often you play it." "What Is Life" has featured in Bruce Pollock's book "The 7,500 Most Important Songs of 1944–2000", "Treble" website's "The Top 200 Songs of the 1970s" (ranked at number 101) and Dave Thompson's "1000 Songs That Rock Your World" (at number 247).