Pale Smoke (BM 1584) vs Smoke (BM 2122-40)

Living room with walls painted Benjamin Moore Pale Smoke 1584 (simulated) — Pale Smoke BM 1584#C9D3D0, LRV 63.6

Living room with walls painted Benjamin Moore Smoke 2122-40 (simulated) — Smoke BM 2122-40#BAC8C9, LRV 56.4

Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.

Quick decision

Lighter: Pale Smoke, LRV 63.6 vs 56.4.
Warmer: Pale Smoke (Lab b* 0.3 vs -2.1). Pale Smoke reads green-gray; Smoke reads blue-gray.
North rooms: Pale Smoke keeps more brightness (L* 79.8 vs 75.6 in north light); both drift gray about equally.
Trim that works: Whispering Spring BM 2136-70, #DCE7E6, LRV 77.8: the Benjamin Moore white closest in hue to both.
Closeness: deltaE 3.7, noticeably different. At 3.7, test both: on a full wall the difference will show.

See each color

Pale SmokeBenjamin Moore, BM 1584LRV 63.6, #C9D3D0

SmokeBenjamin Moore, BM 2122-40LRV 56.4, #BAC8C9

Pale Smoke (BM 1584) is lighter than Smoke (BM 2122-40) and slightly warmer: LRV 63.6 vs 56.4, deltaE 3.7 (noticeably different).

Side by side

Measure	Pale Smoke	Smoke	Gap
Brand	Benjamin Moore	Benjamin Moore
Color code	1584	2122-40
Hex	#C9D3D0	#BAC8C9
RGB	201, 211, 208	186, 200, 201
HSL	162°, 10%, 81%	184°, 12%, 76%
LRV (light reflectance value)	63.6	56.4	+7.2
Lab L*	83.7	79.6	+4.1
Lab a*	-3.9	-4.6	+0.6
Lab b*	0.3	-2.1	+2.5
Undertone	Neutral	Neutral
Temperature	neutral	neutral
Color family	Gray	Gray

Same paint, two kinds of light

Pale Smoke (BM 1584), published as #C9D3D0

North light (cool, indirect)
#B7C9CE

South light (warm, direct)
#DBDDD0

Smoke (BM 2122-40), published as #BAC8C9

North light (cool, indirect)
#A8BEC7

South light (warm, direct)
#CDD2C9

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 Pale Smoke (BM 1584) for a small room or a north-facing room, because it is 7.2 LRV points lighter (63.6 vs 56.4), so it bounces back more of the limited light
Pick Smoke (BM 2122-40) for a south-facing room, because its Lab b* is -2.1 against 0.3, so it is the cooler of the two and offsets warm direct sun
Pick Pale Smoke (BM 1584) to warm a north-facing room, because it is the warmer of the two (Lab b* 0.3), which counters cool indirect light

Closest matches to Pale Smoke in other brands

Closest matches to Smoke in other brands

Common questions

Is Pale Smoke the same color as Smoke?: They are noticeably different: a CIEDE2000 difference of 3.7. Most people can see the difference between Pale Smoke and Smoke side by side.
Which is lighter, Pale Smoke or Smoke?: Pale Smoke, with an LRV of 63.6 against 56.4.

Full pages

By Paint Pairs. Color data from manufacturer specifications, via PaintDB. The most-viewed colors are checked against each manufacturer's own color page.

Published 2026-10-01. Updated 2026-10-01.

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.