Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic commented: "In for a Penny: Raves & Faves functions as a "more of the best" companion to Shout! Factory's excellent 2004 Get Yer Boots On: The Best of Slade. In for a Penny concentrates on hits that didn't climb as high on the charts, as well as deep album tracks, B-sides, and non-LP singles. This isn't much use for big hardcore fans, since most of the rarities appear on expanded reissues or other British comps, but this isn't designed with them in mind: it's for those who have Get Yer Boots On, or some other hits compilation, and want to hear more. [The] compilation producers sort through the abundance of Slade recordings and whittles it down to a dynamite 15-track collection. Even if they're not quite as timeless as Slade's biggest hits, these are pieces of glittering trash from the litterbin that are as much giddy fun as anything on Get Yer Boots On, which means anybody who loved that disc shouldn't hesitate to pick this set up."[1]
CMJ New Music Monthly wrote: "This is the companion jam to the fine Get Yer Boots On: The Best of Slade. Nab that first if you haven't yet acquainted yourself with this fab band of platform-pouncing, plaid-unitard glam geniuses. If there actually was anything way-out and groovy about the '70s, Slade is the embodiment of it. Huge gods in the UK, they never made much of a dent here until Quiet Riot covered, like, 20 of their songs in the '80s. But don't hold that against Slade. Contrary to the usual critical putdowns of their genre's teen-bubblegum tendencies, the craw-hooking singalongs and Nuggets-era covers here prove Slade's deep knowledge of big harmonies, rugged riffs and really funny phrases about constant sexual pursuit. With loopy off-the-beaten-hits rarities, swell liner note stories for each one and garish band pics, the only complaint is that the mastering is whack, with some tunes much louder than others. Otherwise, you're in for a pound."[3]
Jan Ramsey of OffBeat stated: "In For a Penny is Shout! Factory's second cull from Slade's catalog, and oddly, it might be a better starting place than 2004's Get Yer Boots On or Sladest. Without the hits that defined the band, In for a Penny shows Slade to be a really good, hard blues band, not quite a garage band but one with a garage band's edge. It opens with a version of "Shape of Things to Come" that easily cuts the Yardbirds' version, and only slows down for the gentle pop "When the Lights Are Out.""[4]
