 The critical response to "No One Knows" was generally positive. In The Guardian review of Songs for the Deaf, Dave Simpson said "'No One Knows' has killer riffs to spare". Playlouder were similarly enthused, calling the song "soulful, like the last gasp of the hero in an old western". Eric Carr of Pitchfork Media called it an "easy groove" and "four-to-the-floor slime of the highest quality".
