The song is a mid-tempo pop ballad about a love lost to distance, or a boy who commits suicide after the death of his lover. Instrumentation includes a lightly strummed guitar and intermediate piano lines. The ballad received generally positive reviews from music critics, who noted the song's memorability and complimented its composition. Upon the release of "Up All Night", "Moments" charted in lower regions on the singles charts of Australia, Canada, and the United Kingdom due to strong digital download sales. One Direction performed the song on all three of their major concert tours: Up All Night Tour (2011–12), Take Me Home Tour (2013) and Where We Are Tour (2014).