[1] Harriet Gibsone from The Guardian thought Horan's "This Town" "promotes his guise as an acoustic balladeer," while the video is "reinforcing the authenticity of his future career as a credible artist with skills beyond being adorable."

She concluded "The modern music world can be discombobulating for those opposed to gender fluid pop stars or auto-tuned trap.

But with collaborator Greg Kurstin behind the boards, “This Town” skews more towards the modern, folk-influenced songwriting of Vance Joy and Ed Sheeran.

"[7] For Raisa Bruner of Time is a "lush, guitar-forward ballad in the vein of the band’s earlier tearjerkers, with hints of Sheeran in the small-town storytelling of the lyrics.

"[8] For Noisey, Sarah Sahim was critical of the track, noting the song was "nothing special", but its saccharine sweetness gives it all the makings of a decent hit.