NEUTRALS

Forged Iron

#555257

RGB 85, 82, 87 · HSL 276°, 3%, 33% · CMYK 2, 6, 0, 66

Forged Iron is #555257 in HEX — rgb(85, 82, 87), hsl(276°, 3%, 33%), cmyk(2%, 6%, 0%, 66%).

Forged Iron pulls into the rich end of the neutrals spectrum — HSL 276°, 3%, 33%. 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#555257

RGB85, 82, 87

HSL276°, 3%, 33%

HSV276°, 6%, 34%

CMYK2, 6, 0, 66

Decimal5591639

CSS RGBrgb(85, 82, 87)

CSS HSLhsl(276, 3%, 33%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Dulux

Otto's Boy SG6B7

ΔE 1.4 · #59555A

Benjamin Moore

Almost 2130-30

ΔE 1.7 · #504F54

Sherwin-Williams

Perle Noir SW9154

ΔE 2.4 · #4F4D51

Behr

Lump Of Coal HDC-WR15-4

ΔE 2.5 · #4E5055

Valspar

Muskeg Grey 4005-2C

ΔE 2.7 · #545659

Vista Paint

Zuli K-769

ΔE 3 · #5D585B

Kilz

Motor Gray TB-38

ΔE 3.1 · #545658

PPG

Gray Flannel 1013-6

ΔE 3.3 · #585960

Dunn-Edwards

Edge of Black DE6349

ΔE 3.5 · #54585E

Dutch Boy

Seal of Grey VS-9301

ΔE 3.8 · #575757

RAL

Graphite Grey 7024

ΔE 4.8 · #474A51

IKEA

IKEA152 152

ΔE 5.1 · #494F50

Hallman-Lindsay

Smokescreen 556

ΔE 5.2 · #5E5755

Colorhouse

Metal .05 Metal-05

ΔE 5.2 · #535654

Farrow & Ball

Railings 31

ΔE 5.7 · #45484B

Kobra

Red 17

ΔE 12.3 · #583F40

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 MasstoneViolet 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

#555257

#545752

Analogous

#525257

#555257

#575256

Triadic

#555257

#575552

#525755

Split-Complementary

#555257

#565752

#525752

Tetradic

#555257

#575252

#545752

#525657

Monochromatic

#0D0C0D

#2E2D2F

#555257

#7B777E

#A19EA3

Rectangle

#555257

#575254

#545752

#525755

Compound

#555257

#575256

#545752

#525752

Variations

Lighter

#77737A

#99969B

#C3C2C4

Darker

#444145

#2F2D30

#1B1A1C

Saturation

#545355

#555257

#5D297F

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

7.69:1

AAA

vs Black

2.73:1

Fail

Deuteranopia

#555257

#535357

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#555257

#535356

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#555257

#555352

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Quiet · Versatile

Forged Iron 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

#7F6A5C

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#555257

Daylight 5500K

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

#6C6F81

Cool Bulb 6500K

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

Pairs With

#EBEAEB

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.

#445936

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: #555257;

CSS — background

background-color: #555257;

CSS Variable

--color-forged-iron: #555257;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'forged-iron': '#555257' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#555257] text-[#555257]

SCSS

$forged-iron: #555257;

Similar Colors

Almost Black

#4F4E53 · ΔE 2.1

Deep Space

#52565A · ΔE 3.2

French Beret

#4C4F52 · ΔE 3.4

Westcott Navy

#4E5357 · ΔE 3.4

Temptation

#54585C · ΔE 3.5

Day's End

#4B4B4F · ΔE 3.6

Mythic

#5F5960 · ΔE 3.7

Cheating Heart

#4B4D4F · ΔE 3.9

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 #555257?

#555257 is Forged Iron, a deep neutral with a cool undertone.

Is #555257 warm or cool?

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

What rooms work best with Forged Iron?

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

What colors pair well with Forged Iron?

Forged Iron 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 Forged Iron?

You can download Forged Iron 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 Forged Iron?

The hex code is #555257. In RGB it's 85, 82, 87, and in HSL it's 276°, 3%, 33%.

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