Smoky Ash (BM 986)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Smoky Ash (BM 986) is a deep, warm beige from Benjamin Moore: LRV 26.8, so it reflects about 27 percent of the light that hits it.
Colors that go with Smoky Ash
Four Benjamin Moore colors picked for Smoky Ash 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 Smoky Ash, 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 | Sawdust | SW 6158 | 26 | 1.3 | very close |
| Behr | Weathered Fossil | N310-5 | 26.1 | 0.9 | indistinguishable |
| Valspar | Rugged | 3008-9C | 26 | 1.6 | very close |
| PPG Paints | Oyster Shell | 14-13 | 29 | 2.7 | noticeably different |
Lighter and darker in Benjamin Moore
The Benjamin Moore beige colors nearest to Smoky Ash (LRV 26.8) by LRV.
Lighter than Smoky Ash
Darker than Smoky Ash
Color data
| Brand | Benjamin Moore |
|---|---|
| Color code | 986 |
| Hex | #998B75 |
| RGB | 153, 139, 117 |
| HSL | 37°, 15%, 53% |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 26.8 |
| Lab L*, a*, b* | 58.5, 1.6, 13.7 |
| Undertone | Warm Yellow |
| Temperature | warm |
| Color family | Beige |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Smoky Ash (BM 986), published as #998B75
#8A8274
#A99575
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 Smoky Ash (BM 986)?
- Smoky Ash has an LRV of 26.8. LRV runs from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) and measures the share of light a surface reflects, so Smoky Ash is a deep color.
- What is the closest match to Smoky Ash in another brand?
- Weathered Fossil (Behr N310-5) from Behr, at a deltaE of 0.9 (indistinguishable).
- Is Smoky Ash warm or cool?
- Benjamin Moore lists Smoky Ash as warm, with a Warm Yellow undertone. Its Lab b* value is 13.7; 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.