 Keith Phipps of The A.V. Club said although he liked the pilot episode, he thought jokes in "Canvassing" were "pretty thin on the ground", the supporting cast lacked good material and the Leslie character was less likable than the previous week. Phipps, who gave the episode a C grade, said, "This wasn ’ t a terrible half-hour of comedy by any stretch. It drifted by easily enough. But I ’ m already having to scour my notes to remind myself of the stuff that was funny." "Canvassing" was first broadcast in Australia on Channel Seven on December 8, 2009, and received a positive review from The Sydney Morning Herald writer Mark Ellis. He particularly praised Poehler and Ansari, and said of the episode, "Tune in just to hear her say to her canvassing companion, who complains it's hot and wants to cool off:' We could blow in each other's faces.'"
