"DNA" has been characterized as an upbeat EDM and pop song. Some music journalists have noted elements of soft rock, hip hop and turbo-pop. In terms of musical notation, the song is composed in the key of C♯ minor, with a tempo of 130 beats per minute, and runs for 3:43. The modern electronic production consists of whistles, added bells, and acoustic guitar. It is driven by dynamic strings and a pulsating drum-line. Instrumentation for the song is provided by guitar, bass, keyboards, synthesizer, and drums. Band members RM, J-Hope and Jungkook provided backing vocals for the track, alongside KASS, Supreme Boi, Pdogg, and Lee Shinseong, while Tim Finn provided the bass vocals.

The song opens with a whistle hook glissando, which leads to an acoustic guitar loop. The beat introduced in the next section follows an accented four-on-the-floor rhythm pattern. The pre-chorus makes use of staccato guitar strums leading to an EDM-heavy drop. The chorus utilizes an instrumental breakdown composed of rising-falling synth-line over acoustic guitar, accompanied by heavy Auto-Tuned vocals. The titular phrase is chanted during the chorus. The song features "melodic" verses, "softer" vocal harmonies and "aggressive" raps from the band.

According to RM, "DNA" revolves around "the expression of a young, passionate love" that is "very different" from the band's previous releases. Lyrically, the song explores the theme of fate and love at first sight, through lines like: "I knew you from first sight/ As if we have been calling for each other/ The DNA in my veins tells me/ You're the one I’ve been searching for. It also delves into themes of science and religion comparing love to a mathematical formula and divine providence; "Our meeting is a mathematical formula/ Religious commandments, law of the universe." The lyrics further use cosmic and corporeal imagery to display the theme of universal love such as "From the day the universe was birthed/ Over the infinite centuries/ In our past lives and probably in our next too/ We are together eternally."

"DNA" received generally favourable reviews from music critics. Writing for Idolator, Jacques Peterson regarded the song as "fizzy, candy-coated EDM" and likened the acoustic guitars in the production to that of Swedish DJ Avicii. Peterson also wrote another article for the same publication where he praised the "musical bells and whistles" in the song's production which "completely transcends racial and language barriers for a truly global sound." Do-heon Kim from IZM praised the song's "detailed" production, labelling the track as a "moment of peak." Reviewing for Vulture, Dee Lockett stated that the song evolved the band's sound and was "unlike so many of the songs that made them an international phenomenon," calling it one of the better singles of the year." Billboard's Tamar Herman appreciated the balance of "powerful EDM elements and softer harmonies" and likened the whistling to Selena Gomez's song, "Kill Em with Kindness" (2016). Caitlin Kelley, also of Billboard, cited the track as "one of those rare instances when a K-pop act's transmutation of their American influences was reflected back at the U.S. in full Technicolor."

In The Korea Herald, Dam-young Hong felt that the track displayed a new musical direction for the band as opposed to their signature hip-hop styles and wrote that the song "is a hint of the group's resolution that it will continue trying different musical approaches." Hyun-su Yim, also of The Korea Herald, acclaimed the song for its "whistled hook", "feather-light guitar riffs" and "generous use of the pop-drop." Elias Leight of Rolling Stone enjoyed the track, describing it as "a jauntily strummed pop tune." Reviewing for The New York Times, Jon Caramanica favoured the "shuddering club-music drops" in the production and also likened the guitar intro to that of Shawn Mendes. In another review for the same publication, Caramanica cited the song as a "peak hypercolor pop." Taylor Glasby from Clash magazine praised the track, calling it an "idiosyncratic earworm," which "struck a chord." Tamara Fuentes of Seventeen liked the song and deemed it as "fun and infectious." Writing for The Malaysia Star, Chester Chin shared a similar view, describing the track as a "livewire EDM banger." In a mixed review for Spin, Monique Melendez regarded the song as an "outlier" as compared to the band's previous songs but panned the use of heavy Auto-Tune.
"DNA" became the first-place winner on various South Korean weekly music programs. The song won a total of 10 music show awards including a "triple crown" (three consecutive wins) on both Music Bank and Inkigayo. The song also achieved five consecutive Melon Weekly Popularity Awards due to its substantial success on digital platforms. Billboard included "DNA" in their lists of greatest boy band songs of all time and 100 best songs of 2017. The song received several accolades, most notably Best Music Video at the 2017 Melon Music Awards and …

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"DNA" debuted at number two on South Korean's Gaon Digital Chart for the chart issue dated September 17–23, 2017, and sold 224,178 digital units within its first week of release. The single remained in the top five for four consecutive weeks before falling out of the top ten for the week of October 15, 2017. "DNA" was the sixth best-performing song of the September 2017 issue of the Gaon Monthly Digital Chart based on digital sales, streaming, and background music (instrumental track) downloads. It eventually became the 56th and 22nd best-performing song of 2017 and 2018 respectively in South Korea. As of February 2019, "DNA" has sold over 2.5 million digital units in the country. Additionally, the song peaked at number one on the Billboard K-pop Hot 100 and at number five on the Billboard Japan Hot 100.

"DNA" debuted at number 85 on the US Billboard Hot 100 for the chart issue dated September 21, 2017, becoming BTS' first entry on the chart. The following week, it climbed to and peaked at number 67. In so doing, it became the highest-charting song by a Korean band, surpassing Wonder Girls' record at number 76. The single debuted at number one on the US World Digital Songs chart issue dated October 10, 2017, becoming the band's fourth number one on the chart. As of September 2019, the track has sold nearly 100,000 downloads in the US. On February 9, 2018, it was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for track equivalent sales of 500,000 units." "DNA" gave BTS their first entry on the UK Singles Chart at number 90. The song also charted at number 47 on the Canadian Hot 100 and appeared at number 99 on Australia's ARIA Charts. It was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for track-equivalent sales of 35,000 units.

Following the release of the song as a single album in Japan, "Mic Drop / DNA / Crystal Snow" topped the Oricon Daily Singles Chart on its first day of release, selling 269,861 copies. The single remained at number one on the daily chart for the next six days, selling 365,096 physical copies in its first week. With this, the band became the first foreign artist to surpass 300,000 copies in a week. "Mic Drop / DNA / Crystal Snow" peaked at number one on the Oricon Weekly Singles Chart for the chart issue dated December 4–10, 2017. For the year end chart, it was the 13th best-selling single of 2017 in the country. On January 15, 2018, the single album received Double Platinum certification from the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ), denoting shipments of 500,000 copies, making BTS the only foreign artist to achieve this for a single released in 2017. In April 2020, "DNA" received a Silver streaming certification from the RIAJ for 30 million digital streams.