Black Forest Green (BM PM-12)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Black Forest Green (BM PM-12) is a very deep, neutral black from Benjamin Moore: LRV 2.7, so it reflects about 3 percent of the light that hits it.
Colors that go with Black Forest Green
Three Benjamin Moore colors picked for Black Forest Green 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 Forest Green, 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 | Night Watch | SW 9680 | 4 | 4.0 | noticeably different |
| Behr | Limousine Leather | MQ5-05 | 4.5 | 7.3 | clearly different |
| Valspar | Nocturnal Green | 5011-1 | 6 | 9.0 | clearly different |
| PPG Paints | Dark As Night | 14-05 | 6 | 7.9 | clearly different |
Lighter and darker in Benjamin Moore
The Benjamin Moore black colors nearest to Black Forest Green (LRV 2.7) by LRV.
Lighter than Black Forest Green
Color data
| Brand | Benjamin Moore |
|---|---|
| Color code | PM-12 |
| Hex | #242E2C |
| RGB | 36, 46, 44 |
| HSL | 168°, 12%, 16% |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 2.7 |
| Lab L*, a*, b* | 18.0, -4.8, -0.1 |
| Undertone | Neutral |
| Temperature | neutral |
| Color family | Black |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Black Forest Green (BM PM-12), published as #242E2C
#15262B
#32362C
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 Black Forest Green (BM PM-12)?
- Black Forest Green has an LRV of 2.7. LRV runs from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) and measures the share of light a surface reflects, so Black Forest Green is a very deep color.
- What is the closest match to Black Forest Green in another brand?
- Night Watch (SW 9680) from Sherwin-Williams, at a deltaE of 4.0 (noticeably different).
- Is Black Forest Green warm or cool?
- Benjamin Moore lists Black Forest Green as neutral, with a Neutral undertone. Its Lab b* value is -0.1; 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.