Kendall Charcoal (BM HC-166) vs Iron Ore (SW 7069)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Quick decision
- Lighter
- Kendall Charcoal, LRV 14.6 vs 6.
- Warmer
- Kendall Charcoal, both neutral gray (Lab b* 2.4 vs 1.2).
- North rooms
- Kendall Charcoal keeps more brightness (L* 39.2 vs 24.4 in north light); both drift gray about equally.
- Trim that works
- Garlic Bulb BM 2112-70, #E4E3E0, LRV 74.5: the Benjamin Moore white closest in hue to both.
- Closeness
- deltaE 12.4, clearly different. At 12.4, treat them as different colors.
See each color
More comparisons with Kendall Charcoal
Kendall Charcoal (BM HC-166) is lighter than Iron Ore (SW 7069) and slightly warmer: LRV 14.6 vs 6, deltaE 12.4 (clearly different).
Side by side
| Measure | Kendall Charcoal | Iron Ore | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Benjamin Moore | Sherwin-Williams | |
| Color code | HC-166 | SW 7069 | |
| Hex | #676662 | #434341 | |
| RGB | 103, 102, 98 | 67, 67, 65 | |
| HSL | 48°, 2%, 39% | 60°, 2%, 26% | |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 14.6 | 6 | +8.6 |
| Lab L* | 43.2 | 28.4 | +14.8 |
| Lab a* | -0.4 | -0.4 | +0.0 |
| Lab b* | 2.4 | 1.2 | +1.2 |
| Undertone | Neutral | Warm Charcoal | |
| Temperature | neutral | neutral | |
| Color family | Gray | Black |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Kendall Charcoal (BM HC-166), published as #676662
#585D60
#776F62
Iron Ore (SW 7069), published as #434341
#343B3F
#524B41
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 Kendall Charcoal (BM HC-166) for a small room or a north-facing room, because it is 8.6 LRV points lighter (14.6 vs 6), so it bounces back more of the limited light
- Pick Iron Ore (SW 7069) for a south-facing room, because its Lab b* is 1.2 against 2.4, so it is the cooler of the two and offsets warm direct sun
- Pick Kendall Charcoal (BM HC-166) to warm a north-facing room, because it is the warmer of the two (Lab b* 2.4), which counters cool indirect light
Closest matches to Kendall Charcoal in other brands
Closest matches to Iron Ore in other brands
Common questions
- Is Kendall Charcoal the same color as Iron Ore?
- They are clearly different: a CIEDE2000 difference of 12.4. Kendall Charcoal and Iron Ore are different colors.
- Which is lighter, Kendall Charcoal or Iron Ore?
- Kendall Charcoal, with an LRV of 14.6 against 6.
Full pages
Related comparisons
Sources: Kendall Charcoal: LRV and hex from Benjamin Moore technical data (verified 2026-10-02); Iron Ore: 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.