Powell Gray (BM CW-665)

Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Powell Gray (BM CW-665) is a very deep, cool gray from Benjamin Moore: LRV 14.6, so it reflects about 15 percent of the light that hits it.
Colors that go with Powell Gray
Four Benjamin Moore colors picked for Powell Gray by this site's color math: a trim white, a deeper gray, 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 Powell 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 | Grays Harbor | SW 6236 | 12 | 1.3 | very close |
| Behr | Calligraphy | N490-6 | 12.1 | 0.8 | indistinguishable |
| Valspar | Cobalt Cannon | 5001-2C | 12 | 2.6 | noticeably different |
| PPG Paints | Lava Gray | 1038-6 | 13 | 1.5 | very close |
Lighter and darker in Benjamin Moore
The Benjamin Moore gray colors nearest to Powell Gray (LRV 14.6) by LRV.
Lighter than Powell Gray
Darker than Powell Gray
Color data
| Brand | Benjamin Moore |
|---|---|
| Color code | CW-665 |
| Hex | #5A656C |
| RGB | 90, 101, 108 |
| HSL | 203°, 9%, 39% |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 14.6 |
| Lab L*, a*, b* | 42.1, -2.6, -5.4 |
| Undertone | Cool |
| Temperature | cool |
| Color family | Gray |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Powell Gray (BM CW-665), published as #5A656C
#495C6A
#6B6E6C
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 Powell Gray (BM CW-665)?
- Powell Gray has an LRV of 14.6. LRV runs from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) and measures the share of light a surface reflects, so Powell Gray is a very deep color.
- What is the closest match to Powell Gray in another brand?
- Calligraphy (Behr N490-6) from Behr, at a deltaE of 0.8 (indistinguishable).
- Is Powell Gray warm or cool?
- Benjamin Moore lists Powell Gray as cool, with a Cool undertone. Its Lab b* value is -5.4; 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.