Calm (BM OC-22) vs Classic Gray (BM OC-23)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Quick decision
- Lighter
- Calm, LRV 75.8 vs 73.7.
- Warmer
- Classic Gray (Lab b* 4.8 vs 2.7). Calm reads neutral white; Classic Gray reads warm white.
- North rooms
- Calm: keeps more brightness (L* 86.7 vs 85.2 in north light) and drifts less gray (chroma drop 0.1 vs 2.9).
- Trim that works
- Alabaster BM 876, #F2EFE8, LRV 85.1: the Benjamin Moore white closest in hue to both.
- Closeness
- deltaE 2.1, very close. At 2.1, test both side by side if the room is dim or north-facing.
See each color
Classic Gray
More comparisons with Classic Gray
Calm (BM OC-22) is slightly lighter than Classic Gray (BM OC-23) and slightly cooler: LRV 75.8 vs 73.7, deltaE 2.1 (very close).
Side by side
| Measure | Calm | Classic Gray | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Benjamin Moore | Benjamin Moore | |
| Color code | OC-22 | OC-23 | |
| Hex | #E6E4DF | #E3E0D7 | |
| RGB | 230, 228, 223 | 227, 224, 215 | |
| HSL | 43°, 12%, 89% | 45°, 18%, 87% | |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 75.8 | 73.7 | +2.2 |
| Lab L* | 90.6 | 89.2 | +1.4 |
| Lab a* | -0.2 | -0.5 | +0.4 |
| Lab b* | 2.7 | 4.8 | −2.1 |
| Undertone | Neutral | Neutral | |
| Temperature | neutral | neutral | |
| Color family | Off-white | Off-white |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Calm (BM OC-22), published as #E6E4DF
#D4DADD
#F8EEDF
Classic Gray (BM OC-23), published as #E3E0D7
#D1D6D5
#F5EAD7
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 Calm (BM OC-22) for a small room or a north-facing room, because it is 2.2 LRV points lighter (75.8 vs 73.7), so it bounces back more of the limited light
- Pick Calm (BM OC-22) for a south-facing room, because its Lab b* is 2.7 against 4.8, so it is the cooler of the two and offsets warm direct sun
- Pick Classic Gray (BM OC-23) to warm a north-facing room, because it is the warmer of the two (Lab b* 4.8), which counters cool indirect light
Closest matches to Calm in other brands
Closest matches to Classic Gray in other brands
Common questions
- Is Calm the same color as Classic Gray?
- They are very close: a CIEDE2000 difference of 2.1. Side by side you may see a slight difference between Calm and Classic Gray.
- Which is lighter, Calm or Classic Gray?
- Calm, with an LRV of 75.8 against 73.7.
Full pages
Related comparisons
Sources: LRV and hex from Benjamin Moore technical data (verified 2026-10-02). 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.