It was produced by Tim Pagnotta and written by the group's four members Tom Dumont, Davey Havok, Tony Kanal, and Adrian Young.

Dreamcar is an American supergroup, consisting of Tony Kanal, Tom Dumont and Adrian Young, all members of No Doubt, and AFI's lead vocalist Davey Havok.

[13][14][15] Ben Kaye from Consequence of Sound classified "Born to Lie" and "Kill for Candy" as alternative and new wave songs, which he said contradicts a claim Stefani once made that Dreamcar is a punk band.

[16] Tom Breihan from Stereogum contrasted "Born to Lie" with "Kill for Candy", feeling that the former leans more towards "efficient modern rock" territory.

[20] Brandi Smith from Riff Magazine wrote that although Havok sings in a new style on "Born to Lie" in contrast with the rest of Dreamcar, the lyrical component remains the same.

"[12] Rolling Stone's Ryan Reed analyzed the lyrics "I've grown too tired to lie / And you're born so sick of truth" and believed they tell of a "would-be romance ruined by practicality".

[21] Breihan stated that if it were not for Havok's "yelpy, dramatic delivery", then "Born to Lie" would have been classified as a "fairly anonymous piece of movie-trailer rock" song.

[17] Although Consequence of Sound's Collin Brennan found the song to be derivative of "I Ran (So Far Away)" (1982) by A Flock of Seagulls, he believed Dumont and Young's performances provide "enough oomph to steer it away from self-parody".