To determine whether the expression \( 8 - 2 \) is rational or irrational, we first need to simplify it:
\[ 8 - 2 = 6 \]
The number 6 is an integer, and all integers are considered rational numbers because they can be expressed as a fraction. Specifically, \( 6 \) can be represented as \( \frac{6}{1} \).
Therefore, the result of \( 8 - 2 \) is a rational number.