At
Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics,
Renegades has an average score of 78 based on 26 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
AllMusic critic John Bush wrote that the record "works well with just a bare few exceptions, in part because Rage Against the Machine is both smart enough to change very little and talented enough to make the songs its own."
Alternative Press described the record as "a tour through three decades of sonic recalcitrance" and "the genome map of seditious sound".
Entertainment Weeklys Rob Brunner described the record as "a remarkably diverse, if not exactly surprising, mix of
heavy rock,
hip hop and
protest music". He said it "would still be a raging success even if this disc does nothing but introduce a new generation to the joys of Bob Dylan and Minor Threat".
Mojo wrote: "This crisp, Rick Rubin-produced outing packs away a machine that was well-oiled to the last." Kitty Empire of
NME labeled the record "a brilliant archaeology" and "a sonic history lesson". The
Rolling Stone critic Tom Moon said the band executed "diverse tracks" such as Bruce Springsteen's "
The Ghost of Tom Joad", the Rolling Stones' "
Street Fighting Man",
Afrika Bambaataa's "
Renegades of Funk" and Bob Dylan's "
Maggie's Farm" with "the roaring, fearless spirit that’s been missing in action since these songs were new", while
Select regarded it as their "most satisfying record since
their debut". ==Track listing==