Zen (PPG 1040-1)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Zen (PPG 1040-1) is a light, neutral gray from PPG Paints: LRV 68, so it reflects about 68 percent of the light that hits it.
Colors that go with Zen
Four PPG Paints colors picked for Zen by this site's color math: a trim white, a deeper gray, a quiet contrast from another family, a dark accent. PPG Paints did not choose these pairings.
Closest match in every other brand
Each brand's closest color to Zen, 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 | Hinting Blue | SW 6519 | 68 | 0.8 | indistinguishable |
| Benjamin Moore | Beacon Gray | 2128-60 | 65.9 | 1.1 | very close |
| Behr | Siberian Ice | MQ3-57 | 68.2 | 0.0 | indistinguishable |
| Valspar | Ghost Ship | 4007-3A | 71 | 1.3 | very close |
Lighter and darker in PPG Paints
The PPG Paints gray colors nearest to Zen (LRV 68) by LRV.
Lighter than Zen
Darker than Zen
Color data
| Brand | PPG Paints |
|---|---|
| Color code | 1040-1 |
| Hex | #CFD9DE |
| RGB | 207, 217, 222 |
| HSL | 200°, 19%, 84% |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 68 |
| Lab L*, a*, b* | 86.1, -2.4, -3.6 |
| Undertone | Cool |
| Temperature | neutral |
| Color family | Gray |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Zen (PPG 1040-1), published as #CFD9DE
#BDCFDC
#E2E3DE
These swatches and the rooms above are a simulation, not a measurement. How the visualizer works
Similar shades from PPG Paints
More from PPG Paints
Common questions
- What is the LRV of Zen (PPG 1040-1)?
- Zen has an LRV of 68. LRV runs from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) and measures the share of light a surface reflects, so Zen is a light color.
- What is the closest match to Zen in another brand?
- Siberian Ice (Behr MQ3-57) from Behr, at a deltaE of 0.0 (indistinguishable).
- Is Zen warm or cool?
- PPG Paints lists Zen as neutral, with a Cool undertone. Its Lab b* value is -3.6; 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.