 "Dinosaurs on a Spaceship" received generally positive reviews from critics, with a few detractors. Dan Martin of The Guardian described it as "fun", with praise to the expensive-looking sets and dinosaurs, the usefulness of Amy and Rory, and the concept of the gang. While he admitted it was "flimsy" and "pretty much a story built around a title", he thought it was "the finest episode two from Doctor Who in some time". However, he was unsettled by the underscore of darkness that was "almost disturbing enough to ruin everything". Similarly, Charlie Anders of io9 called it "the most fun I can remember Doctor Who being in years", while also noting gradual distancing between the Doctor and the Ponds and identifying a recurrent theme in this season: the Doctor "not being recognized". Radio Times reviewer Patrick Mulkern was pleased that the "flawlessly realised" CGI dinosaurs redeemed the ones seen in Invasion of the Dinosaurs. He also praised Bradley's Solomon and the "fresh slant" of having the ark built by Silurians, rather than humans as previously seen in the programme. The A.V. Club's Keith Phipps gave it a B, finding that it was formulaic but executed well. Unlike Martin, he enjoyed the dark turns. Will Barber – Taylor of The Consulting Detective, found the episode "A mixture between good CGI and a rather nicely paced story means that “ Dinosaurs on a Spaceship ” keeps you hooked to the end."
