Smokey Taupe (BM 983)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Smokey Taupe (BM 983) is a medium, warm beige from Benjamin Moore: LRV 54.5, so it reflects about 55 percent of the light that hits it.
Colors that go with Smokey Taupe
Four Benjamin Moore colors picked for Smokey Taupe by this site's color math: a trim white, a deeper beige, 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 Smokey Taupe, 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 | Slumber Sloth | SW 9606 | 56 | 0.3 | indistinguishable |
| Behr | Sculptor Clay | PPU5-08 | 55.2 | 0.3 | indistinguishable |
| Valspar | Oatbran | 6006-1B | 56 | 0.8 | indistinguishable |
| PPG Paints | Synchronicity | 1021-2 | 57 | 0.6 | indistinguishable |
Lighter and darker in Benjamin Moore
The Benjamin Moore beige colors nearest to Smokey Taupe (LRV 54.5) by LRV.
Lighter than Smokey Taupe
Darker than Smokey Taupe
Color data
| Brand | Benjamin Moore |
|---|---|
| Color code | 983 |
| Hex | #CDC4B5 |
| RGB | 205, 196, 181 |
| HSL | 38°, 19%, 76% |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 54.5 |
| Lab L*, a*, b* | 79.5, 0.6, 8.7 |
| Undertone | Warm |
| Temperature | warm |
| Color family | Beige |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Smokey Taupe (BM 983), published as #CDC4B5
#BCBAB3
#DECEB5
These swatches and the rooms above are a simulation, not a measurement. How the visualizer works
Similar shades from Benjamin Moore
Comparisons that include Smokey Taupe (BM 983)
More from Benjamin Moore
Common questions
- What is the LRV of Smokey Taupe (BM 983)?
- Smokey Taupe has an LRV of 54.5. LRV runs from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) and measures the share of light a surface reflects, so Smokey Taupe is a medium color.
- What is the closest match to Smokey Taupe in another brand?
- Slumber Sloth (SW 9606) from Sherwin-Williams, at a deltaE of 0.3 (indistinguishable).
- Is Smokey Taupe warm or cool?
- Benjamin Moore lists Smokey Taupe as warm, with a Warm undertone. Its Lab b* value is 8.7; a higher b* is warmer and yellower, a lower one cooler and bluer.
Sources: LRV and hex from Benjamin Moore technical data (verified 2026-10-02). 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.