[9] An apparent visual magnitude of +3.39[2] makes it visible to the naked eye, but a challenge to view from a well-lit urban environment.

Based upon parallax measurements, it is located at a distance of roughly 308 light-years (94 pc) from Earth.

[13][14] Rho Persei is a semiregular variable star, whose apparent magnitude varies between 3.3 and 4.0[15] with periods of 50, 120 and 250 days.

[4] The outer envelope has an effective temperature of 3,479 K,[7] giving it the red-orange hue of an M-type star.

Consequently, the Chinese name for ρ Persei itself is 大陵六 (Dà Líng liù, English: the Sixth Star of Mausoleum.).