Critical Reception
The song received general acclaim upon release. Heather Richels of The Paly Voice complimented its hook and catchiness, while deeming it the most appealing song of the album. While reviewing The Onyx Hotel Tour, Pamela Sitt of The Seattle Times called it the album's strongest single. Eric Olsen of msnbc.com said the song could be the biggest hit of In the Zone, while calling it "powerfully addicting." Caryn Ganz of Spin commented that, "Spears hits pay dirt on 'Toxic'". Christy Lemire of Associated Press said it was one of Spears' greatest hits and deemed it as "insanely catchy", saying that the chorus alone "makes you want to forgive the Alias wannabe video that accompanies the song." Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic called it along with "Showdown", "irresistible ear candy in what is surely Britney's most ambitious, adventurous album to date". In a separate review of Greatest Hits: My Prerogative (2004), Erlewine selected it as one of the "track picks" and described it as "a delirious, intoxicating rush". Jeffrey Epstein of Out compared the innovative sound of "Toxic" to Madonna's "Vogue".
Dave De Sylvia of Sputnikmusic deemed it as her first real crossover track since "...Baby One More Time". Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine said that "Toxic" and "(I Got That) Boom Boom", "find Britney dabbling in hip-hop, but it's clear her heart lies in the clubs." Jamie Gill of Yahoo! Music Radio commented that, "In the name of fairness, it will be noted that 'Toxic' and 'Showdown' could well have been good pop songs in the hands of any other singer than Spears." Joan Anderman of The Boston Globe named it "a well-titled cascade of frantic, mechanized glissandos and dreadful canned strings that buries the album's coolest (only?) chorus under a joyless mass". The song was ranked at number five in the 2004 Pazz & Jop poll by The Village Voice. "Toxic" was nominated for Best Song at the 2004 MTV Europe Music Awards, but lost to Outkast's "Hey Ya!". It won Best Single at the 2004 Teen Choice Awards. Pitchfork listed the song at number three on their Top 50 Singles of 2004 list. Rob Mitchum commented that Spears "finally, she just acted like an adult, rather than constantly reminding us she wasn't a girl anymore."
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