Pale Oak (BM OC-20) vs Fog Mist (BM OC-31)
Quick decision
- Lighter
- Fog Mist, LRV 70.2 vs 68.6.
- Warmer
- Fog Mist (Lab b* 7.0 vs 5.9). Pale Oak reads greige; Fog Mist reads warm white.
- North rooms
- Fog Mist keeps more brightness (L* 84.3 vs 82.8 in north light); both drift gray about equally.
- Trim that works
- Arbor White BM ES-01, #F2EDDF, LRV 85: the Benjamin Moore white closest in hue to both.
- Closeness
- deltaE 1.3, very close. At 1.3, test both side by side if the room is dim or north-facing.
See each color
Pale Oak (BM OC-20) is slightly darker than Fog Mist (BM OC-31) and slightly cooler: LRV 68.6 vs 70.2, deltaE 1.3 (very close).
Side by side
| Measure | Pale Oak | Fog Mist | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Benjamin Moore | Benjamin Moore | |
| Color code | OC-20 | OC-31 | |
| Hex | #DDD9CE | #E2DDD0 | |
| RGB | 221, 217, 206 | 226, 221, 208 | |
| HSL | 44°, 18%, 84% | 43°, 24%, 85% | |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 68.6 | 70.2 | −1.5 |
| Lab L* | 86.7 | 88.2 | −1.5 |
| Lab a* | -0.5 | -0.5 | −0.0 |
| Lab b* | 5.9 | 7.0 | −1.1 |
| Undertone | Warm Greige | Neutral | |
| Temperature | warm | warm | |
| Color family | Greige | Off-white |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Pale Oak (BM OC-20), published as #DDD9CE
#CCCFCC
#EFE3CE
Fog Mist (BM OC-31), published as #E2DDD0
#D1D3CE
#F4E7D0
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 Fog Mist (BM OC-31) for a small room or a north-facing room, because it is 1.5 LRV points lighter (70.2 vs 68.6), so it bounces back more of the limited light
- Pick Pale Oak (BM OC-20) for a south-facing room, because its Lab b* is 5.9 against 7.0, so it is the cooler of the two and offsets warm direct sun
- Pick Fog Mist (BM OC-31) to warm a north-facing room, because it is the warmer of the two (Lab b* 7.0), which counters cool indirect light
Closest matches to Pale Oak in other brands
Closest matches to Fog Mist in other brands
Common questions
- Is Pale Oak the same color as Fog Mist?
- They are very close: a CIEDE2000 difference of 1.3. Side by side you may see a slight difference between Pale Oak and Fog Mist.
- Which is lighter, Pale Oak or Fog Mist?
- Fog Mist, with an LRV of 70.2 against 68.6.
Full pages
Related comparisons
Sources: Pale Oak: LRV and hex from Benjamin Moore technical data (verified 2026-10-02); Fog Mist: 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.