"Live to Tell" is a pop ballad, with background instrumentation from a keyboard, a synthesizer, a funk guitar and a mix of synthesized and real drumming. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Alfred Publishing, the song is written in the key of F major, is set in common time and moves at a moderate tempo of 112 beats per minute. The song starts with an instrumental introduction, performed by a synthesizer with the bass pedals set on D minor. Then the key suddenly changes to its relative major, F.