C minor, with a chord progression of A♭–B♭–Gm–Cm. Sia's vocal range span from the note of G3 to the note of E♭5. According to Andrew Gregory of The Daily Telegraph, the song's intro features "a hint of 80s flavour". Al Fox of BBC Music wrote that on the song, Sia has "ghostly mandolin-esque vocals". Cameron Adams of Herald Sun called them "square-peg", while Melinda Newman of HitFix compared her vocals to those by Fergie. Genevieve Koski of The A.V. Club wrote that on the song, Sia "manage[s] to keep [her] head above the waves of synths ... by amping up [her] vocals to match the outsized beats." David Jeffries of Allmusic compared the song to the music of Coldplay. Critical reception David Byrne and Tony Peregrin of Windy City Times described "Titanium" as "epic" and "energizing", writing, "it is Sia who steals the show" on Nothing but the Beat. Robert Copsey of Digital Spy agreed, calling the song one of "the record's standouts". Tom Ewing of The Guardian wrote, "Sia, on 'Titanium', handles the album's best hook well." Rich Lopez of Dallas Voice wrote that the "collaborative lyrics elevate this song to a higher level than any previous track" from the album, and called it "clever writing" from Sia. David Griffiths off 4Music called it "The most intriguing hook-up" on the album, writing that Titanium' sees Guetta giving the Australian songstress some long overdue commercial appeal, while Sia's vocals bring a quirky twist." Kerri Mason of Billboard magazine described the song as "Guetta's quirkiest and most epic track to date (in itself an unusual combination)." Jamie Horne of The Border Mail called it a "strong" track. Joe Copplestone of PopMatters noted that songs on the album such as "Titanium" and "Night of Your Life", "recall the power" of Guetta's previous collaborations with Kelly Rowland on "When Love Takes Over" (2009) and "Commander" (2010). "Titanium" was nominated for Dance Work of the Year at the 2012 APRA Music Awards, but lost to "From the Music" by The Potbelleez. After the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in December 2012, "Titanium" was pulled from radio stations in the United States due to the use of gun-related lyrics in the song. "Titanium" is part of a group of songs that have been taken off the air, including Kesha's "Die Young", and "Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People. Chart performance On the French Singles