YELLOWS

Desert Sandstorm

#B5B09B

RGB 181, 176, 155 · HSL 48°, 15%, 66% · CMYK 0, 3, 14, 29

Desert Sandstorm is #B5B09B in HEX — rgb(181, 176, 155), hsl(48°, 15%, 66%), cmyk(0%, 3%, 14%, 29%).

Desert Sandstorm pulls into the light end of the yellows spectrum — HSL 48°, 15%, 66%. The neutral saturation makes it near-neutral and forgiving, and the hue reads warm. In interior projects it shines on kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms, accent walls — bringing sunlight indoors. Reads best alongside white trim, natural linen, light oak, brushed brass.

Color Codes

HEX#B5B09B

RGB181, 176, 155

HSL48°, 15%, 66%

HSV48°, 14%, 71%

CMYK0, 3, 14, 29

Decimal11907227

CSS RGBrgb(181, 176, 155)

CSS HSLhsl(48, 15%, 66%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Behr

Desert Sandstorm BXC-43

Exact match

Farrow & Ball

French Gray 18

ΔE 1.2 · #B5B19A

Sherwin-Williams

Svelte Sage SW6164

ΔE 1.6 · #B2AC96

Dulux

Reed Bed S17B3

ΔE 1.7 · #B0AC96

Benjamin Moore

Finnie CW-55

ΔE 1.8 · #B5AD9A

PPG

True Khaki 14-27

ΔE 2.1 · #B8AE98

Dunn-Edwards

Turtle Trail DE6256

ΔE 2.2 · #B6B5A0

IKEA

IKEA169 169

ΔE 2.7 · #B7AE9D

Valspar

Carriage House 6003-1C

ΔE 2.7 · #B3AF9F

Hallman-Lindsay

Langdon Dove historic-langdon-dove

ΔE 3.2 · #B5AB9A

Vista Paint

Roman Ruins C-224

ΔE 3.2 · #BFB49D

Kilz

Khaki LL220

ΔE 3.3 · #B3A997

Colorhouse

Stone .05 Stone-05

ΔE 4.3 · #AAA593

RAL

Pebble Grey 7032

ΔE 5.4 · #B8B799

Dutch Boy

Olive Gold DCP-0281

ΔE 5.5 · #C7BBA3

Kobra

Beige 05

ΔE 15.2 · #D0C092

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

43/100

Medium

0 · DarkLight · 100

Balanced reflectance — holds colour without washing out. Versatile for most rooms and the most forgiving range for true-to-chip results.

Undertone

TemperatureWarm MasstoneYellow UndertoneGreen

Reads as a warm yellow with a green undertone showing through, especially in daylight. Pair trim and adjacent colours to either calm or amplify that undertone.

Color Theory

Complementary

#B5B09B

#9BA0B5

Analogous

#B5A39B

#B5B09B

#AEB59B

Triadic

#B5B09B

#9BB5B0

#B09BB5

Split-Complementary

#B5B09B

#9BAEB5

#A39BB5

Tetradic

#B5B09B

#9BB5A3

#9BA0B5

#B59BAE

Monochromatic

#6A644E

#958D6F

#B5B09B

#D6D3C7

#F4F3F0

Rectangle

#B5B09B

#A0B59B

#9BA0B5

#B09BB5

Compound

#B5B09B

#AEB59B

#9BA0B5

#A39BB5

Variations

Lighter

#C4C0AF

#D2CFC4

#E4E3DD

Darker

#9A9274

#6C664D

#3F3B2D

Saturation

#ACABA4

#B5B09B

#DAC676

Interior Use

Best Rooms

kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms

Best Uses

accent walls, ceilings, cabinetry highlights

Pairs With

white trim, natural linen, light oak, brushed brass

Accessibility (WCAG)

vs White

2.18:1

Fail

vs Black

9.65:1

AAA

Deuteranopia

#B5B09B

#B5B09C

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#B5B09B

#B1B19E

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#B5B09B

#B6ADAF

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Bright · Optimistic

Desert Sandstorm brings light into spaces that lack it — kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms wake up under it. The trick with yellow is restraint: lean toward the muted/buttery end if you want it on walls; reserve high-chroma versions for accents and trim.

SymbolismSunlight, clarity, intellect

PersonalityCheerful, alert, sociable

sunlightclarityjoyalertnesskitchenmorning

How it looks under different light

#C7B18F

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#B5B09B

Daylight 5500K

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

#B4B6B4

Cool Bulb 6500K

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

Pairs With

#EBEBEA

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.

#737EAB

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 · Trim · Soft furniture

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: #B5B09B;

CSS — background

background-color: #B5B09B;

CSS Variable

--color-desert-sandstorm: #B5B09B;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'desert-sandstorm': '#B5B09B' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#B5B09B] text-[#B5B09B]

SCSS

$desert-sandstorm: #B5B09B;

Similar Colors

Finnie Gray

#B4AC99 · ΔE 2.0

Urban Sophisticate

#BCB5A1 · ΔE 2.2

Kid Gloves

#B2AB99 · ΔE 2.4

Nantucket Gray

#AFAB93 · ΔE 2.6

Pashmina

#BBB2A1 · ΔE 2.9

Sag Harbor Gray

#B8AE95 · ΔE 3.0

Killarney

#B8B8A1 · ΔE 3.3

Gallery Buff

#BFB5A3 · ΔE 3.4

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 #B5B09B?

#B5B09B is Desert Sandstorm, a soft yellow with a warm undertone.

Is #B5B09B warm or cool?

Desert Sandstorm reads warm, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Desert Sandstorm?

Desert Sandstorm works well in kitchens, breakfast nooks, kids' rooms. Designers typically use it for accent walls, ceilings, cabinetry highlights.

What colors pair well with Desert Sandstorm?

Desert Sandstorm pairs naturally with white trim, natural linen, light oak, brushed brass. Its complementary color is also a strong contrast option for accents.

Where can I download Desert Sandstorm?

You can download Desert Sandstorm 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 Desert Sandstorm?

The hex code is #B5B09B. In RGB it's 181, 176, 155, and in HSL it's 48°, 15%, 66%.

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