Shoji White (SW 7042) vs Neutral Ground (SW 7568)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Quick decision
- Lighter
- Shoji White, LRV 74 vs 70.
- Warmer
- Neutral Ground (Lab b* 8.9 vs 6.7). Shoji White reads warm white; Neutral Ground reads greige.
- North rooms
- Shoji White keeps more brightness (L* 85.2 vs 83.4 in north light); both drift gray about equally.
- Trim that works
- Ivory Lace SW 7013, #ECE5D8, LRV 79: the Sherwin-Williams white closest in hue to both.
- Closeness
- deltaE 2.0, very close. At 2.0, test both side by side if the room is dim or north-facing.
See each color
Neutral Ground
More comparisons with Neutral Ground
Shoji White (SW 7042) is slightly lighter than Neutral Ground (SW 7568) and slightly cooler: LRV 74 vs 70, deltaE 2.0 (very close).
Side by side
| Measure | Shoji White | Neutral Ground | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Sherwin-Williams | Sherwin-Williams | |
| Color code | SW 7042 | SW 7568 | |
| Hex | #E6DFD3 | #E2DACA | |
| RGB | 230, 223, 211 | 226, 218, 202 | |
| HSL | 38°, 28%, 86% | 40°, 29%, 84% | |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 74 | 70 | +4 |
| Lab L* | 89.1 | 87.3 | +1.8 |
| Lab a* | 0.3 | 0.0 | +0.3 |
| Lab b* | 6.7 | 8.9 | −2.1 |
| Undertone | Warm | Warm | |
| Temperature | warm | warm | |
| Color family | Off-white | Beige |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Shoji White (SW 7042), published as #E6DFD3
#D5D5D1
#F8E9D3
Neutral Ground (SW 7568), published as #E2DACA
#D1D0C8
#F4E4CA
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 Shoji White (SW 7042) for a small room or a north-facing room, because it is 4 LRV points lighter (74 vs 70), so it bounces back more of the limited light
- Pick Shoji White (SW 7042) for a south-facing room, because its Lab b* is 6.7 against 8.9, so it is the cooler of the two and offsets warm direct sun
- Pick Neutral Ground (SW 7568) to warm a north-facing room, because it is the warmer of the two (Lab b* 8.9), which counters cool indirect light
Closest matches to Shoji White in other brands
Closest matches to Neutral Ground in other brands
Common questions
- Is Shoji White the same color as Neutral Ground?
- They are very close: a CIEDE2000 difference of 2.0. Side by side you may see a slight difference between Shoji White and Neutral Ground.
- Which is lighter, Shoji White or Neutral Ground?
- Shoji White, with an LRV of 74 against 70.
Full pages
Related comparisons
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.