 Patrick Mulkern, writing for Radio Times, thought that the ending was an "emotional overload ... but what better way to deal with the emotionally deprived Cybermen?" He was pleased with the "sweet cameo" from Amy and Rory and the "tense coda" with River Song and Kovarian. Keith Phipps of The A.V. Club gave "Closing Time" a grade of "B +", feeling that the episode was more about small character moments than the Cybermen plot. Though he wrote it was not as strong as "The Lodger", he praised the way it gave a break before the season finale to bring out the softer side of the Doctor. Digital Spy's Morgan Jeffery praised Smith, Corden, and Lynda Baron as Val, and felt that it was a "relief" to have a fun episode after two emotional heavy ones. However, he did not think it was as good as "The Lodger" and thought the Cybermen were "wasted", citing the conclusion of Craig blowing them up with love as "unsatisfactory". Andrew Blair of Den of Geek defended the Cybermen in the episode, opining that the episode brought out the tragedy of them barely surviving and having to convert people mechanically without any emotional understanding of the situation.
