October Mist (BM CC-550) vs Clary Sage (SW 6178)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Quick decision
- Lighter
- October Mist, LRV 46.5 vs 41.
- Warmer
- Clary Sage, both green-gray (Lab b* 11.2 vs 9.4).
- North rooms
- October Mist keeps more brightness (L* 70.1 vs 66.1 in north light); both drift gray about equally.
- Trim that works
- Mascarpone BM AF-20, #F8F7E8, LRV 89: the Benjamin Moore white closest in hue to both.
- Closeness
- deltaE 3.3, noticeably different. At 3.3, test both: on a full wall the difference will show.
See each color
More comparisons with October Mist
October Mist (BM CC-550) is lighter than Clary Sage (SW 6178) and slightly cooler: LRV 46.5 vs 41, deltaE 3.3 (noticeably different).
Side by side
| Measure | October Mist | Clary Sage | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Benjamin Moore | Sherwin-Williams | |
| Color code | CC-550 | SW 6178 | |
| Hex | #B6B8A5 | #ACAD97 | |
| RGB | 182, 184, 165 | 172, 173, 151 | |
| HSL | 66°, 12%, 68% | 63°, 12%, 64% | |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 46.5 | 41 | +5.5 |
| Lab L* | 74.2 | 70.1 | +4.1 |
| Lab a* | -4.1 | -4.3 | +0.2 |
| Lab b* | 9.4 | 11.2 | −1.8 |
| Undertone | Neutral | Warm Yellow | |
| Temperature | warm | warm | |
| Color family | Green | Green |
Same paint, two kinds of light
October Mist (BM CC-550), published as #B6B8A5
#A5AEA3
#C7C2A5
Clary Sage (SW 6178), published as #ACAD97
#9CA395
#BDB797
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 October Mist (BM CC-550) for a small room or a north-facing room, because it is 5.5 LRV points lighter (46.5 vs 41), so it bounces back more of the limited light
- Pick October Mist (BM CC-550) for a south-facing room, because its Lab b* is 9.4 against 11.2, so it is the cooler of the two and offsets warm direct sun
- Pick Clary Sage (SW 6178) to warm a north-facing room, because it is the warmer of the two (Lab b* 11.2), which counters cool indirect light
Closest matches to October Mist in other brands
Closest matches to Clary Sage in other brands
Common questions
- Is October Mist the same color as Clary Sage?
- They are noticeably different: a CIEDE2000 difference of 3.3. Most people can see the difference between October Mist and Clary Sage side by side.
- Which is lighter, October Mist or Clary Sage?
- October Mist, with an LRV of 46.5 against 41.
Full pages
Related comparisons
Sources: October Mist: LRV and hex from Benjamin Moore technical data (verified 2026-10-02); Clary Sage: 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.