Imperial Gold (Valspar 3003-5C)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Imperial Gold (Valspar 3003-5C) is a medium, warm yellow from Valspar: LRV 49, so it reflects about 49 percent of the light that hits it.
Colors that go with Imperial Gold
Four Valspar colors picked for Imperial Gold by this site's color math: a trim white, a deeper yellow, a quiet contrast from another family, a dark accent. Valspar did not choose these pairings.
Closest match in every other brand
Each brand's closest color to Imperial Gold, 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 | Golden Fleece | SW 6388 | 46 | 2.0 | very close |
| Benjamin Moore | Dark Beige | 2165-40 | 46.8 | 0.8 | indistinguishable |
| Behr | Cellini Gold | HDC-CL-18 | 50 | 0.4 | indistinguishable |
| PPG Paints | Honey Bunny | 1090-3 | 51 | 2.5 | noticeably different |
Lighter and darker in Valspar
The Valspar yellow colors nearest to Imperial Gold (LRV 49) by LRV.
Lighter than Imperial Gold
Darker than Imperial Gold
Color data
| Brand | Valspar |
|---|---|
| Color code | 3003-5C |
| Hex | #DCB482 |
| RGB | 220, 180, 130 |
| HSL | 33°, 56%, 69% |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 49 |
| Lab L*, a*, b* | 75.7, 7.8, 30.9 |
| Undertone | Warm Yellow-Red |
| Temperature | warm |
| Color family | Yellow |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Imperial Gold (Valspar 3003-5C), published as #DCB482
#CDAA81
#ECBE81
These swatches and the rooms above are a simulation, not a measurement. How the visualizer works
Similar shades from Valspar
More from Valspar
Common questions
- What is the LRV of Imperial Gold (Valspar 3003-5C)?
- Imperial Gold has an LRV of 49. LRV runs from 0 (black) to 100 (pure white) and measures the share of light a surface reflects, so Imperial Gold is a medium color.
- What is the closest match to Imperial Gold in another brand?
- Cellini Gold (Behr HDC-CL-18) from Behr, at a deltaE of 0.4 (indistinguishable).
- Is Imperial Gold warm or cool?
- Valspar lists Imperial Gold as warm, with a Warm Yellow-Red undertone. Its Lab b* value is 30.9; 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.