Balboa Mist (BM 1549) vs Accessible Beige (SW 7036)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Quick decision
- Lighter
- Balboa Mist, LRV 65.5 vs 58.
- Warmer
- Accessible Beige, both greige (Lab b* 8.8 vs 5.4).
- North rooms
- Balboa Mist: keeps more brightness (L* 81.8 vs 76.7 in north light) and drifts less gray (chroma drop 3.9 vs 4.9).
- Trim that works
- Ivory Tower BM 2157-70, #FBF2E4, LRV 86: the Benjamin Moore white closest in hue to both.
- Closeness
- deltaE 4.6, noticeably different. At 4.6, test both: on a full wall the difference will show.
See each color
More comparisons with Accessible Beige
Balboa Mist (BM 1549) is lighter than Accessible Beige (SW 7036) and cooler: LRV 65.5 vs 58, deltaE 4.6 (noticeably different).
Side by side
| Measure | Balboa Mist | Accessible Beige | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Benjamin Moore | Sherwin-Williams | |
| Color code | 1549 | SW 7036 | |
| Hex | #DAD6CC | #D1C7B8 | |
| RGB | 218, 214, 204 | 209, 199, 184 | |
| HSL | 43°, 16%, 83% | 36°, 21%, 77% | |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 65.5 | 58 | +7.5 |
| Lab L* | 85.7 | 80.7 | +5.0 |
| Lab a* | -0.4 | 0.9 | −1.3 |
| Lab b* | 5.4 | 8.8 | −3.3 |
| Undertone | Neutral | Warm Sandy | |
| Temperature | warm | warm | |
| Color family | Greige | Beige |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Balboa Mist (BM 1549), published as #DAD6CC
#C9CCCA
#ECE0CC
Accessible Beige (SW 7036), published as #D1C7B8
#C0BDB6
#E2D1B8
These swatches and the rooms above are a simulation, not a measurement. How the visualizer works
Which should you pick
Rules of thumb computed from the LRV and Lab values in the table above; no room test was done.
- Pick Balboa Mist (BM 1549) for a small room or a north-facing room, because it is 7.5 LRV points lighter (65.5 vs 58), so it bounces back more of the limited light
- Pick Balboa Mist (BM 1549) for a south-facing room, because its Lab b* is 5.4 against 8.8, so it is the cooler of the two and offsets warm direct sun
- Pick Accessible Beige (SW 7036) to warm a north-facing room, because it is the warmer of the two (Lab b* 8.8), which counters cool indirect light
Closest matches to Balboa Mist in other brands
Closest matches to Accessible Beige in other brands
Common questions
- Is Balboa Mist the same color as Accessible Beige?
- They are noticeably different: a CIEDE2000 difference of 4.6. Most people can see the difference between Balboa Mist and Accessible Beige side by side.
- Which is lighter, Balboa Mist or Accessible Beige?
- Balboa Mist, with an LRV of 65.5 against 58.
Full pages
Related comparisons
Sources: Balboa Mist: LRV and hex from Benjamin Moore technical data (verified 2026-10-02); Accessible Beige: 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.