NEUTRALS

Sweet Molasses

#4C423F

RGB 76, 66, 63 · HSL 14°, 9%, 27% · CMYK 0, 13, 17, 70

Sweet Molasses is #4C423F in HEX — rgb(76, 66, 63), hsl(14°, 9%, 27%), cmyk(0%, 13%, 17%, 70%).

Sweet Molasses pulls into the deep end of the neutrals spectrum — HSL 14°, 9%, 27%. 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#4C423F

RGB76, 66, 63

HSL14°, 9%, 27%

HSV14°, 17%, 30%

CMYK0, 13, 17, 70

Decimal4997695

CSS RGBrgb(76, 66, 63)

CSS HSLhsl(14, 9%, 27%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Behr

Sweet Molasses PPU5-20

Exact match

Benjamin Moore

Tucker CW-175

ΔE 0.8 · #4B413F

PPG

Phantom Mist 1002-7

ΔE 1.5 · #4B4441

Dulux

Rural Avenue S05A8

ΔE 1.8 · #483E3B

Vista Paint

Chocolate C-1458

ΔE 2 · #4E413C

Kilz

Black Cherry LM110

ΔE 2 · #4D423C

Hallman-Lindsay

Chocolate historic-chocolate

ΔE 2.1 · #4D403B

Valspar

Black Raisin 4002-2C

ΔE 2.3 · #514745

Farrow & Ball

Mahogany 36

ΔE 2.5 · #534644

Sherwin-Williams

Sealskin SW7675

ΔE 2.7 · #48423C

Dunn-Edwards

Mink DE6392

ΔE 3.4 · #524A46

IKEA

IKEA091 91

ΔE 4.4 · #574C49

Colorhouse

Nourish .05 Nourish-05

ΔE 4.6 · #53453C

RAL

Grey Brown 8019

ΔE 4.7 · #403A3A

Kobra

Black 44

ΔE 7.3 · #383737

Dutch Boy

Seal of Grey VS-9301

ΔE 9.5 · #575757

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

6/100

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

TemperatureWarm MasstoneRed UndertonePink

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

Color Theory

Complementary

#4C423F

#3F484B

Analogous

#4B3F42

#4C423F

#4B483F

Triadic

#4C423F

#3F4B42

#423F4B

Split-Complementary

#4C423F

#3F4B48

#3F424B

Tetradic

#4C423F

#424B3F

#3F484B

#483F4B

Monochromatic

#0E0C0C

#211D1C

#4C423F

#756661

#9B8C87

Rectangle

#4C423F

#484B3F

#3F484B

#423F4B

Compound

#4C423F

#4B483F

#3F484B

#3F424B

Variations

Lighter

#746561

#988B87

#C2BCBA

Darker

#3C3432

#2A2422

#181514

Saturation

#474443

#4B423F

#6A311F

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

9.73:1

AAA

vs Black

2.16:1

Fail

Deuteranopia

#4C423F

#47453F

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#4C423F

#44443F

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#4C423F

#4C4242

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Quiet · Versatile

Sweet Molasses 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

#785E4A

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#4C423F

Daylight 5500K

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

#66636F

Cool Bulb 6500K

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

Pairs With

#EBEAEA

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.

#2C4249

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: #4C423F;

CSS — background

background-color: #4C423F;

CSS Variable

--color-sweet-molasses: #4C423F;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'sweet-molasses': '#4C423F' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#4C423F] text-[#4C423F]

SCSS

$sweet-molasses: #4C423F;

Similar Colors

Tucker Chocolate

#4A403E · ΔE 1.1

Brownstone

#4E433D · ΔE 2.0

Cordovan Brown

#4A4442 · ΔE 2.1

Night Horizon

#4B433D · ΔE 2.1

Deep Caviar

#494242 · ΔE 2.4

Black Bean Soup

#453C39 · ΔE 2.8

Mississippi Mud

#52433E · ΔE 2.9

Oxford Brown

#4F423B · ΔE 3.0

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 #4C423F?

#4C423F is Sweet Molasses, a deep neutral with a cool undertone.

Is #4C423F warm or cool?

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

What rooms work best with Sweet Molasses?

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

What colors pair well with Sweet Molasses?

Sweet Molasses 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 Sweet Molasses?

You can download Sweet Molasses 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 Sweet Molasses?

The hex code is #4C423F. In RGB it's 76, 66, 63, and in HSL it's 14°, 9%, 27%.

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