 Lasting three minutes and 33 seconds, the song is influenced by tropical, reggae and Latin music.According to sheet music published by Sony/ATV Music Publishing on Musicnotes.com, "Real Friends" is composed in the key of C minor and set in common time at a moderate tempo of 92 beats per minute.Cabello's voice ranges from a low of B3 to a high of C5, and the music has a Cm7–Fm7–B–E/D chord progression.