Upon release, "Sorry" was met with positive responses from
music critics. Jennifer Vineyard of
MTV considered it the "album's strongest track" and that the song "wistfully evokes the sounds of the '80s-era dance clubs that first lofted her toward stardom". According to a review in the
BBC's
Collective, "New single 'Sorry' states Queen Madge's unapologetic stance, and though the song is wrapped up in relationship sentiment, one cannot help but hear the subtext, perhaps directed at her more savage critics: 'there are more important things than hearing you speak'." Alan Braidwood from
BBC Music called the song "lethally catchy". While reviewing
Confessions on a Dance Floor, Keith Caulfield from
Billboard called the song "springy", and commented that it "should keep fans hung up on Madonna's ability to create instant radio and club classics", sounding "like a smash no matter how you spin it; no need for apologies here" in a separate review for the single. Ben Williams of
New York magazine opined that the song is "propelled by a catchy bass melody". According to Stephen M. Deusner from
Pitchfork, "The cascades of sound wash directly into 'Sorry', setting up the song's panlingual apologies and shifting bass tectonics."
Alexis Petridis from
The Guardian referred to the song's chorus as "triumphant", while
Rolling Stones Alan Light classified it as "throbbing". According to
Slant Magazines Sal Cinquemani, "Sorry" was a "insanely catchy second single that’s destined to become a Madonna classic". Similarly, the staff of
E! Online wrote it was "sure to be a future disco anthem". Joan Morgan from
The Village Voice newspaper, in a review of
Confessions on a Dance Floor, wrote: "The party continues admirably with the multilingual, kick-your-man-to-the-curb 'Sorry'."
Jon Pareles of
The New York Times felt that the first half of the album consists of love songs, happy and sad, and included "Sorry" into the mix. According to Caryn Ganz from
Spin, Price transformed the track into a "bouncy talk-to-the-hand groovefest". Thomas Inksweep from
Stylus Magazine commented that "Sorry" and "Hung Up" may not be as sleazy as Madonna's initial singles "
Burning Up" (1983) or "Physical Attraction" (1983), but they have the same
modus operandi of being designed for all-night dancing. Johnny Davis of
Q magazine said "Sorry" is catchier than "Hung Up", while the staff of
Herald Sun newspaper called it Madonna's "most popstatic single" since "
Ray of Light" (1998) as well as "brilliant dance-influenced pop, this will be unavoidable once the album is released".
Het Nieuwsblads Mark Coppens also complimented the song, calling it "fantastic" and "catchy, even though you could label it 'flat dance.'" Retrospective reviews also have been positive. A group of writers of
Gay Times magazine wrote that "Sorry had a tough act to follow coming after Hung Up, but it truly stood up on its own". According to Jude Rogers from
The Guardian, the track was Madonna's 13th best single, pointing out that "a fabulous ascending-then-descending bassline bolsters one of Madonna's most club-ready songs". On
Gay Star News ranking, the single came in at number 25, with Joe Morgan stating that "when you're the Queen of Pop, you have to make sure your songs translate. Thumping beats and a killer melody makes sense in any language".
Slant Magazine ranked "Sorry" as her 31st best single, writing that it was "more ABBA-esque than the ABBA-sampling 'Hung Up'".
Entertainment Weeklys Chuck Arnold considered "Sorry" Madonna's 51st best track, commenting, "Madonna doesn't have any reason to apologize for the second single from
Confessions on a Dance Floor", as "no matter how many times we've heard it all before, this still causes a commotion". The song came in the 61st position of
Parade magazine's list of Madonna's singles, with Samuel R. Murrian writing that
Confessions on a Dance Floor "might be the Madonna album with the most inexhaustible replay value", with "Sorry" being one of its highlights. He called it a "thumping, witty kiss-off set in a '70s roller disco".
Recognition "Sorry" was considered the third best single of 2006 by
Slant Magazine, and was nominated in the categories of PRS Most Performed Work and International Hit of the Year at the 2007
Ivor Novello Awards, eventually winning the latter. ==Commercial performance==