Black Tar (BM 2126-10)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Black Tar (BM 2126-10) is a very deep, neutral black from Benjamin Moore: LRV 5.7, so it reflects about 6 percent of the light that hits it.
Colors that go with Black Tar
Three Benjamin Moore colors picked for Black Tar by this site's color math: a trim white, a quiet contrast from another family, a dark accent. Benjamin Moore did not choose these pairings.
Closest match in every other brand
Each brand's closest color to Black Tar, 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 | Greenblack | SW 6994 | 4 | 1.6 | very close |
| Behr | Raven Black | PPF-59 | 4.7 | 1.6 | very close |
| Valspar | Dark Kettle Black | 4011-2 | 5 | 2.7 | noticeably different |
| PPG Paints | Black Magic | 1001-7 | 5 | 2.7 | noticeably different |
Lighter and darker in Benjamin Moore
The Benjamin Moore black colors nearest to Black Tar (LRV 5.7) by LRV.
Lighter than Black Tar
Darker than Black Tar
Color data
| Brand | Benjamin Moore |
|---|---|
| Color code | 2126-10 |
| Hex | #38393A |
| RGB | 56, 57, 58 |
| HSL | 210°, 2%, 22% |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 5.7 |
| Lab L*, a*, b* | 23.9, -0.2, -0.8 |
| Undertone | Neutral |
| Temperature | neutral |
| Color family | Black |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Black Tar (BM 2126-10), published as #38393A
#293138
#46413A
These swatches and the rooms above are a simulation, not a measurement. How the visualizer works
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Common questions
- What is the LRV of Black Tar (BM 2126-10)?
- Black Tar has an LRV of 5.7. LRV runs from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) and measures the share of light a surface reflects, so Black Tar is a very deep color.
- What is the closest match to Black Tar in another brand?
- Raven Black (Behr PPF-59) from Behr, at a deltaE of 1.6 (very close).
- Is Black Tar warm or cool?
- Benjamin Moore lists Black Tar as neutral, with a Neutral undertone. Its Lab b* value is -0.8; a higher b* is warmer and yellower, a lower one cooler and bluer.
Sources: LRV and hex as published by the manufacturer, via PaintDB (CC BY 4.0). 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.