Variety praised the documentary style: "the yarn is told interestingly enough and imbued with sufficient science-fiction lures and suspense so that only seldom does its moralistic wordiness get in the way ... Cast, although secondary to the story, works well".[20][24] Harrison's Reports wrote: "Very good! It is by far the best of the science-fiction pictures yet produced. It holds one's interest undiminished from start to finish and, although the theme is admittedly fantastic, one is made to feel as if he is seeing a real-life occurrence because of the expert handling of the subject matter and the extremely fine special effects work."[25] The Los Angeles Times praised the film's seriousness, though it also found "certain subversive elements".[20] Bosley Crowther of The New York Times dismissed the film as "tepid entertainment" and described Gort as "oddly unmenacing".[26]
The Day the Earth Stood Still was moderately successful when released, accruing US$1,850,000 in distributors' U.S. and Canadian rentals, making it the year's 52nd biggest earner.[27] "Rentals" refers to the distributor/studio's share of the box office gross, which, according to Gebert, is roughly half of the money generated by ticket sales.[27]
The Day the Earth Stood Still earned more plaudits in other countries: the Hollywood Foreign Press Association gave the filmmakers a special Golden Globe Award for "promoting international understanding". Bernard Herrmann's score also received a nomination at the Golden Globes.[28] The French magazine Cahiers du cinéma was impressed, its contributor Pierre Kast called it "almost literally stunning" and praised its "moral relativism".[20]
