NEUTRALS

Calico

#4B5A51

RGB 75, 90, 81 · HSL 144°, 9%, 32% · CMYK 17, 0, 10, 65

Calico is #4B5A51 in HEX — rgb(75, 90, 81), hsl(144°, 9%, 32%), cmyk(17%, 0%, 10%, 65%).

Calico pulls into the rich end of the neutrals spectrum — HSL 144°, 9%, 32%. The neutral saturation makes it near-neutral and forgiving, and the hue reads cool. In interior projects it shines on main walls, trims, ceilings — versatile across nearly any style. Reads best alongside soft whites, natural wood, matte black trim, linen.

Color Codes

HEX#4B5A51

RGB75, 90, 81

HSL144°, 9%, 32%

HSV144°, 17%, 35%

CMYK17, 0, 10, 65

Decimal4938321

CSS RGBrgb(75, 90, 81)

CSS HSLhsl(144, 9%, 32%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Benjamin Moore

Calico 707

Exact match

PPG

Dark Green Velvet 1136-7

ΔE 1.1 · #4A5B51

Dunn-Edwards

Hidden Forest DE6301

ΔE 1.7 · #4F5A51

Sherwin-Williams

Billiard Green SW0016

ΔE 2.4 · #45584D

Vista Paint

Pleasant Hill C-458

ΔE 3.2 · #4C594B

Hallman-Lindsay

Pleasant Hill 459

ΔE 3.2 · #4D5A4C

Behr

Northern Glen MQ6-14

ΔE 3.4 · #546258

Valspar

Thalo Night 5009-4

ΔE 3.6 · #51605B

Dulux

Concealment S27A8

ΔE 3.9 · #405851

Kilz

American Pine TB-69

ΔE 4 · #495748

Kobra

Green 38

ΔE 4 · #415448

RAL

Basalt Grey 7012

ΔE 4.6 · #4E5754

Colorhouse

Metal .05 Metal-05

ΔE 6.7 · #535654

Farrow & Ball

Studio Green 93

ΔE 7.3 · #464C49

IKEA

IKEA152 152

ΔE 8.2 · #494F50

Dutch Boy

Seal of Grey VS-9301

ΔE 8.5 · #575757

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

9/100

Very Dark

0 · DarkLight · 100

Absorbs almost all light — dramatic and cocooning. Needs strong artificial lighting and works best as an accent or in well-lit rooms.

Undertone

TemperatureNeutral MasstoneGreen UndertoneBlue

A near-neutral with a subtle neutral blue undertone — it will pick up colour from surrounding surfaces and shift noticeably under different light.

Color Theory

Complementary

#4B5A51

#594A53

Analogous

#4C594A

#4B5A51

#4A5957

Triadic

#4B5A51

#504A59

#59504A

Split-Complementary

#4B5A51

#574A59

#594A4C

Tetradic

#4B5A51

#4A4C59

#594A53

#59574A

Monochromatic

#0C0E0D

#272F2B

#4B5A51

#6D8376

#95A79C

Rectangle

#4B5A51

#4A5359

#594A53

#59504A

Compound

#4B5A51

#4A5957

#594A53

#594A4C

Variations

Lighter

#6A7F72

#8F9F95

#BEC6C2

Darker

#3B4740

#28312C

#171D1A

Saturation

#4F5451

#4A5950

#257E49

Interior Use

Best Rooms

living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens

Best Uses

main walls, trim, accents

Pairs With

soft whites, natural wood, brass, matte black trim

Accessibility (WCAG)

vs White

7.29:1

AAA

vs Black

2.88:1

Fail

Deuteranopia

#4B5A51

#555452

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#4B5A51

#585852

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#4B5A51

#4C5859

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Quiet · Versatile

Calico gets out of the way so the architecture and the people in the room do the work. The right neutral is never a default — it reads warm or cool, dusty or sharp depending on its undertone, and that undertone is what makes or breaks the room.

SymbolismBalance, sophistication, calm

PersonalityAdaptable, considered, timeless

versatileneutraltimelessbackdroptrimwall

How it looks under different light

#787058

Warm Bulb 2700K

Incandescent / soft white LED — pulls colour toward yellow/amber.

#4B5A51

Daylight 5500K

Midday natural light or daylight-spec LED — closest to the paint chip.

#65757C

Cool Bulb 6500K

Cool white LED / overcast daylight — pulls colour toward blue.

Pairs With

#EAEBEB

Trim

Matched off-white

Same hue at 92% lightness — trim reads coordinated, not stark.

#F7F7F7

Ceiling

Whisper tint

Near-white with a hint of the hero's undertone — ceiling feels intentional.

#573449

Accent

Complementary punch

Hue +180°, slightly muted for paint vs. screen — use on a door, frame, or single piece.

#574738

Floor

Walnut neutral

Warm mid-brown grounds the scheme regardless of hero hue.

Paint Info

Brand · Product Line

Benjamin Moore / Regal Select Interior

Recommended Finishes

Eggshell (walls) · Pearl (trim) · Matte (ceiling)

Eggshell hides imperfections on main walls while keeping the color rich; pearl on trim adds subtle sheen and easier cleaning; flat matte on ceilings prevents glare.

Best Surfaces

Primary walls · Cabinetry · Doors · Mouldings

Coverage & Dry Time

Typical coverage 350-400 sq ft per gallon over a primed surface.

Touch-dry in ~1 hour. Recoat after 4 hours. Full cure 7-14 days.

Primer

Standard primer is adequate.

Application Tip

Use a 9" microfiber roller on walls and a 2.5" angled sash brush for trim cuts. Two coats minimum for even depth.

Paint Calculator

Wall area (m²)

Coats

Coverage (m² / L)

You'll need

4.0 litres

1.06 US gallons · room for one touch-up coat. Buy slightly more to ensure single-batch match.

Code Snippets

CSS — color

color: #4B5A51;

CSS — background

background-color: #4B5A51;

CSS Variable

--color-calico: #4B5A51;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'calico': '#4B5A51' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#4B5A51] text-[#4B5A51]

SCSS

$calico: #4B5A51;

Similar Colors

Calico Blue

#4A5950 · ΔE 0.4

Crisp Romaine

#445851 · ΔE 2.5

Dakota Shadow

#515D51 · ΔE 2.6

Goodwin Green

#435851 · ΔE 2.9

Tarrytown Green

#415752 · ΔE 3.9

Mediterranean Teal

#465956 · ΔE 4.0

Lafayette Green

#486055 · ΔE 4.1

Hidden Falls

#415451 · ΔE 4.7

Built by DSGN.HOUSE Updated 2026

Our color tools run on our own catalogue of 26,000+ real paint colors across 16 brands — Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams, Behr, Dulux, RAL and more — with the color math (HSL and CIELAB matching) computed in-house, not scraped from summaries. Every color you pick maps to a real, buyable paint with its code, so what you see here you can actually take to the store. We review and update these tools and their data regularly.

Created by Denis Kataev, founder of DSGN.HOUSE — a software engineer and digital entrepreneur building professional color-design tools for everyone.

Frequently Asked Questions

What color is #4B5A51?

#4B5A51 is Calico, a deep neutral with a cool undertone.

Is #4B5A51 warm or cool?

Calico reads cool, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Calico?

Calico works well in living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens. Designers typically use it for main walls, trim, accents.

What colors pair well with Calico?

Calico pairs naturally with soft whites, natural wood, brass, matte black trim. Its complementary color is also a strong contrast option for accents.

Where can I download Calico?

You can download Calico on DSGN.HOUSE in 15 designer formats including CSS gradient, Figma, Procreate swatches, Tailwind config, Adobe ASE, SVG, and 4K wallpapers — all free.

What's the hex code for Calico?

The hex code is #4B5A51. In RGB it's 75, 90, 81, and in HSL it's 144°, 9%, 32%.

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