Soot (BM 2129-20)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Soot (BM 2129-20) is a very deep, neutral black from Benjamin Moore: LRV 6.2, so it reflects about 6 percent of the light that hits it.
Colors that go with Soot
Three Benjamin Moore colors picked for Soot 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 Soot, 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 | Inkwell | SW 6992 | 4 | 2.1 | very close |
| Behr | Obsidian Stone | ECC-25-3 | 4.9 | 2.7 | noticeably different |
| Valspar | Dark Kettle Black | 4011-2 | 5 | 2.7 | noticeably different |
| PPG Paints | Napoleon | 1013-7 | 5 | 4.0 | noticeably different |
Lighter and darker in Benjamin Moore
The Benjamin Moore black colors nearest to Soot (LRV 6.2) by LRV.
Lighter than Soot
Darker than Soot
Color data
| Brand | Benjamin Moore |
|---|---|
| Color code | 2129-20 |
| Hex | #373C41 |
| RGB | 55, 60, 65 |
| HSL | 210°, 8%, 24% |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 6.2 |
| Lab L*, a*, b* | 25.0, -0.9, -3.8 |
| Undertone | Cool |
| Temperature | neutral |
| Color family | Black |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Soot (BM 2129-20), published as #373C41
#27343F
#464441
These swatches and the rooms above are a simulation, not a measurement. How the visualizer works
Similar shades from Benjamin Moore
More from Benjamin Moore
Common questions
- What is the LRV of Soot (BM 2129-20)?
- Soot has an LRV of 6.2. LRV runs from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) and measures the share of light a surface reflects, so Soot is a very deep color.
- What is the closest match to Soot in another brand?
- Inkwell (SW 6992) from Sherwin-Williams, at a deltaE of 2.1 (very close).
- Is Soot warm or cool?
- Benjamin Moore lists Soot as neutral, with a Cool undertone. Its Lab b* value is -3.8; 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.