Worldly Gray (SW 7043) vs Modern Gray (SW 7632)
Illustrative room. Screen colors vary; test a sample before you paint.
Quick decision
- Lighter
- Modern Gray, LRV 62 vs 57.
- Warmer
- About the same, both greige (Lab b* 6.5 vs 6.5).
- North rooms
- Modern Gray keeps more brightness (L* 79.2 vs 76.2 in north light); both drift gray about equally.
- Trim that works
- Cotton White SW 7104, #F7EFE3, LRV 87: 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
Worldly Gray
More comparisons with Worldly Gray
Modern Gray
More comparisons with Modern Gray
Worldly Gray (SW 7043) is darker than Modern Gray (SW 7632) and about as warm: LRV 57 vs 62, deltaE 2.0 (very close).
Side by side
| Measure | Worldly Gray | Modern Gray | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brand | Sherwin-Williams | Sherwin-Williams | |
| Color code | SW 7043 | SW 7632 | |
| Hex | #CEC6BB | #D6CEC3 | |
| RGB | 206, 198, 187 | 214, 206, 195 | |
| HSL | 35°, 16%, 77% | 35°, 19%, 80% | |
| LRV (light reflectance value) | 57 | 62 | −5 |
| Lab L* | 80.2 | 83.1 | −2.9 |
| Lab a* | 0.9 | 0.9 | +0.0 |
| Lab b* | 6.5 | 6.5 | +0.0 |
| Undertone | Warm Green | Warm | |
| Temperature | warm | warm | |
| Color family | Greige | Greige |
Same paint, two kinds of light
Worldly Gray (SW 7043), published as #CEC6BB
#BDBCB9
#E0D0BB
Modern Gray (SW 7632), published as #D6CEC3
#C5C4C1
#E8D8C3
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 Modern Gray (SW 7632) for a small room or a north-facing room, because it is 5 LRV points lighter (62 vs 57), so it bounces back more of the limited light
Closest matches to Worldly Gray in other brands
Closest matches to Modern Gray in other brands
Common questions
- Is Worldly Gray the same color as Modern Gray?
- They are very close: a CIEDE2000 difference of 2.0. Side by side you may see a slight difference between Worldly Gray and Modern Gray.
- Which is lighter, Worldly Gray or Modern Gray?
- Modern Gray, with an LRV of 62 against 57.
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.