Shale Gray (Behr 540F-4)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Shale Gray (Behr 540F-4) is a deep, cool blue from Behr: LRV 32.1, so it reflects about 32 percent of the light that hits it.
Colors that go with Shale Gray
Four Behr colors picked for Shale Gray by this site's color math: a trim white, a deeper blue, a quiet contrast from another family, a dark accent. Behr did not choose these pairings.
Closest match in every other brand
Each brand's closest color to Shale Gray, ranked by CIEDE2000 (deltaE): under 1.0 is indistinguishable, 1.0 to 2.3 very close, 2.3 to 5 noticeably different, over 5 clearly different.
| Brand | Closest color | Code | LRV | deltaE | How close |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sherwin-Williams | Debonair | SW 9139 | 34 | 1.9 | very close |
| Benjamin Moore | Water's Edge | 1635 | 31.5 | 1.7 | very close |
| Valspar | Blue Twilight | 5001-1C | 33 | 2.7 | noticeably different |
| PPG Paints | Symphony Of Blue | 1035-4 | 33 | 1.3 | very close |
Lighter and darker in Behr
The Behr blue colors nearest to Shale Gray (LRV 32.1 (estimated)) by LRV.
Lighter than Shale Gray
Darker than Shale Gray
Color data
| Brand | Behr |
|---|---|
| Color code | 540F-4 |
| Hex | #899DA3 |
| RGB | 137, 157, 163 |
| HSL | 194°, 12%, 59% |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 32.1 (estimated from the hex) |
| Lab L*, a*, b* | 63.4, -5.7, -5.5 |
| Undertone | Cool |
| Temperature | cool |
| Color family | Blue |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Shale Gray (Behr 540F-4), published as #899DA3
#7793A1
#9BA7A3
These swatches and the rooms above are a simulation, not a measurement. How the visualizer works
Similar shades from Behr
More from Behr
Common questions
- What is the LRV of Shale Gray (Behr 540F-4)?
- Shale Gray has an LRV of 32.1 (estimated from its hex value). LRV runs from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) and measures the share of light a surface reflects, so Shale Gray is a deep color.
- What is the closest match to Shale Gray in another brand?
- Symphony Of Blue (PPG 1035-4) from PPG Paints, at a deltaE of 1.3 (very close).
- Is Shale Gray warm or cool?
- Behr lists Shale Gray as cool, with a Cool undertone. Its Lab b* value is -5.5; a higher b* is warmer and yellower, a lower one cooler and bluer.
Sources: hex as published by the manufacturer, via PaintDB (CC BY 4.0); LRV is not published by Behr for this color and is estimated here from the color's own hex value. Color differences are CIEDE2000 values computed by this site from the hex values (data snapshot 2026-10-01). Color names and codes belong to their manufacturers.