It is a midtempo country pop and folk rock breakup ballad, with lyrics about being heartbroken by an undeserving ex-partner and moving on from it.

Produced by Swift and Jack Antonoff, the re-recorded track features elements of ska and new instruments like trumpet, saxophone, and flute.

[1] Scott Borchetta, CEO of Big Machine Records where Swift was signed at the time, confirmed her collaboration with Monahan in September 2012 at the iHeartRadio Music Festival.

[6] Talking to reporters backstage at the 53rd Academy of Country Music Awards, Sugarland's Kristian Bush said that he felt "a little anxious" upon hearing from Swift because he "didn't want to mess it up".

[12] It also marked the second song Swift wrote for a country music act since abandoning the genre in 2014, following Little Big Town's "Better Man" (2016).

[20] Rolling Stone's Brittney McKenna characterized it as a "foot-stomping" tune that resembles the styles of Swift's 2010 album Speak Now.

[23] The lyrics address heartbreak;[24] the narrator is devastated upon discovering her lover's infidelity: "And it's strange how your face doesn't look so innocent/ Your secret has its consequence and that's on you, babe.

"[25] Spin's Israel Daramola considered "Babe" a lovely and passionate breakup song, deeming it a "surprisingly feel-good" track given its theme of moving on from heartbreak.

[26] Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone described her background vocals as "lethal",[27] while Billboard's Taylor Weatherby and Danielle Pascual praised the "addictive hook and [...] heart-clenching bridge".

[19] In a less positive review, Caramanica thought that Nettles on the track sounds "constricted, hemmed into another vocalist's box", losing her signature vocal styles.

The video ends with Routh leaving Swift's house to find his front doors locked and his belongings thrown out on the lawn.

Nettles, now alone and free, lies down to go to bed, ready to enjoy her new life, and Routh leaves, as Bush, playing their neighbor, witnesses the whole thing while walking his dog.

[39] Swift's attire in the music video was compared to that of Christina Hendricks's character Joan Holloway from the television series Mad Men.