The pharaoh cuttlefish can reach a length of 16 inches and a weight of 11 pounds.

Cuttlefish used to have an outer shell that covered their body, but evolution morphed it into an internal shell called the cuttlebone. By changing the amount of gas and liquid in the cuttlebone, the pharaoh cuttlefish control their buoyancy.

The pharaoh cuttlefish is often a neutral color of white or dark brown, either solid or mottled. All cuttlefish are known for their color-changing skills as they have up to 200 iridophores and leucophores per square millimeter across their body. This is possible by using groups of red, brown, yellow, and black colors over reflective blue and green. Pharaoh cuttlefish use different patterns to suit its environment best.

The pharaoh cuttlefish is native to the coral reefs of the Indian Ocean in areas such as the Red Sea and Persian Gulf. It is the most commonly caught cuttlefish since it swims to the shallower parts of the sea to eat.

The pharaoh cuttlefish eats crabs, small shrimp, and fish. Most cephalopods have a three-step method for catching prey which includes attention, position, and seizure. Their W-shaped eyelids allows them to see in front and behind them at all times, so they are proficient hunters. Once they catch their prey, the pharaoh cuttlefish will hold it with its 8 arms and consume it using their 2 tentacles and parrotlike beak.

Pharaoh cuttlefish males compete for females using bright color displays and tentacles until one swims off defeated. The winner mates with a female by placing sperm sacs into her, and then guarding her until she lays around 200 fertilized eggs via funnels in small crevices. After a few months, the eggs will hatch, and the young will start feeding on small mollusks and fish and quickly become independent.

The pharaoh cuttlefish is also called the seiche pharaon.