Shunsui Kyōraku is a tall, light-skinned Shinigami with high cheekbones, grey eyes and long wavy brown hair. His hair is tied in a long ponytail and has long bangs that frame the left side of his face. He also has a noticeable amount of body hair on his chest, feet, and arms. He wears a straw hat (called a sakkat) and a pink, flowered lady's kimono, which he drapes across his shoulders and over his captain's uniform. Although his haori and obi sash are cheap, his pin-wheel hairpins are very expensive. He does not wear tabi with his sandals. He has thin facial hair around his mouth and on his cheeks. Over a hundred years before Sōsuke Aizen's defection, Shunsui only had facial hair on his upper mouth. After the battle with the Wandenreich, Shunsui is shown to wear an eyepatch over his right eye that was damaged during the conflict. The top half of his right ear is sliced off at a slight tilt with a scar along his right temple.
As a child, Shunsui is shown to have shorter and messier hair. He wore a flower patterned kimono.
Kyōraku is a laid-back and flamboyant man, evident in his style of dress and general attitude, and is rarely seen without a smile. In his off time, he often drinks sake in bars and naps. He likes steamed buns that go with sake, but dislikes powdered green tea. Other times, he likes to chase after women; particularly his lieutenant, Nanao Ise, whom he calls "my Nanao-chan" (Lil' Nanao in the English Dub) and his former lieutenant, Lisa Yadōmaru. Kyōraku tends to use a more casual speech style than many other captains. He generally refers to his fellow captains and Shinigami by their first name followed by an honorific. Captain Kyōraku wrote a romance novel titled "Rose-colored Path", which runs in Seireitei Communication, but is very unpopular. Kyōraku does not receive a single fan letter or gift for his birthday from his readers, but he is not bothered by this at all.
Kyōraku is a peace-loving man who will always try to talk his way out of battles, though he doesn't wish to insult opponents by refusing to fight. The slightly eccentric Kyōraku also seems to like making an impression on opponents. Though Kyōraku tries to talk his way out of a fight, he will fight when the situation demands it; as seen in his battle with Coyote Starrk. When Starrk asked that they only pretend to fight, he declines the offer, though notes that he prefers to do the same. He maintains a level of honor and integrity when engaging in battle. He refuses to fight with children or even in the presence of a child. He always maintains a veil of respect for his opponent, is polite in combat situations and prefers to fight one on one. When fighting powerful opponents, like Starrk or Aizen, he rarely loses his cool, going as far as to make small talk and joke around with his opponents.
Despite being one of the strongest and oldest captains, Kyōraku retains a level of humility and isn't overly arrogant about his strength, acknowledging that Tōshirō Hitsugaya has the potential to become stronger than himself given enough time. Kyōraku has shown a great distaste for fighting, telling Love Aikawa that "it doesn't matter whether you owe someone or they owe you; as soon as you start fighting, you are in the wrong either way." He also dislikes taking the life of innocent people, as he left Chad alive when Nanao offered to kill him.