Upon its release, pan-European magazine
Music & Media described "Scandal" as a "medium-paced track with a catchy beat and a dramatic build up". Selina Webb of
Music Week remarked that, while there were "no surprises here", Mercury's "turbo-whine is in fine fettle" and the band's backing has "lost nothing of its orchestral impact". William Shaw of
Smash Hits called it "marvellous stuff" with its "thumping synths" and a "perky Brian May guitar bit". He added that, although the lyrics "deservedly lash the press for their tendency to make up fibs in their quest for smut, due to the sheer sensibleness of its theme, it lacks the usual over-the-topness that makes a good Queen single great".
Rebel MC and Michael Menson of
Double Trouble, as guest reviewers for
Number One, felt the song was more of an "album track" and one that was probably "rushed off the album" as a single. They concluded that chartwise it would "surface then sink like the
Titanic". Phil Wilding of
Kerrang! was negative in his review, calling it "such an unprecedented turd of a song that it's really not worth going on about". Muff Fitzgerald of
Record Mirror was also critical, describing it as "terrible". ==Music video==