NEUTRALS

Metal .03

#B5B8B1

RGB 181, 184, 177 · HSL 86°, 5%, 71% · CMYK 2, 0, 4, 28

Metal .03 is #B5B8B1 in HEX — rgb(181, 184, 177), hsl(86°, 5%, 71%), cmyk(2%, 0%, 4%, 28%).

Metal .03 pulls into the light end of the neutrals spectrum — HSL 86°, 5%, 71%. 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#B5B8B1

RGB181, 184, 177

HSL86°, 5%, 71%

HSV86°, 4%, 72%

CMYK2, 0, 4, 28

Decimal11909297

CSS RGBrgb(181, 184, 177)

CSS HSLhsl(86, 5%, 71%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Colorhouse

Metal .03 Metal-03

Exact match

Hallman-Lindsay

Fossilized 581

ΔE 0.7 · #B6B8B0

Sherwin-Williams

Chelsea Gray SW2850

ΔE 0.8 · #B6B7B0

Behr

Keystone Gray HDC-AC-21

ΔE 1.1 · #B7BBB4

Farrow & Ball

Light Blue 22

ΔE 1.4 · #B8BCB5

Vista Paint

Hi Ho Silver K-845

ΔE 1.5 · #B9BAB1

Kilz

Warm Ashes RK220

ΔE 1.5 · #B5B5AF

Valspar

Granite Dust 5006-1C

ΔE 1.7 · #BABCB6

PPG

Gray Stone 1009-4

ΔE 1.7 · #B7B9B5

Benjamin Moore

Sea 2137-50

ΔE 1.8 · #B4B6AC

Dulux

Waltzing SG5F2

ΔE 1.8 · #B3B7AD

IKEA

IKEA187 187

ΔE 2.8 · #BEBFB8

Dunn-Edwards

Pebble Walk DE6277

ΔE 3.2 · #AFB2A7

Dutch Boy

Drifting Sand DCP-0218

ΔE 3.3 · #B6B2A9

RAL

Agate Grey 7038

ΔE 5.9 · #C3C3C3

Kobra

Silver 47

ΔE 8.9 · #CDCECD

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

47/100

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

TemperatureNeutral MasstoneYellow-Green UndertoneYellow

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

Color Theory

Complementary

#B5B8B1

#B5B1B9

Analogous

#B9B8B1

#B5B8B1

#B2B9B1

Triadic

#B5B8B1

#B1B6B9

#B9B1B6

Split-Complementary

#B5B8B1

#B1B2B9

#B8B1B9

Tetradic

#B5B8B1

#B1B9B8

#B5B1B9

#B9B1B2

Monochromatic

#696E63

#909489

#B5B8B1

#DCDDDA

#F2F3F2

Rectangle

#B5B8B1

#B1B9B5

#B5B1B9

#B9B1B6

Compound

#B5B8B1

#B2B9B1

#B5B1B9

#B8B1B9

Variations

Lighter

#C4C7C1

#D3D5D1

#E5E6E4

Darker

#92978B

#64695E

#3A3D37

Saturation

#B5B6B4

#B6B9B1

#BADC8E

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

2.01:1

Fail

vs Black

10.46:1

AAA

Deuteranopia

#B5B8B1

#B8B6B2

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#B5B8B1

#B7B7B2

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#B5B8B1

#B6B7B7

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Quiet · Versatile

Metal .03 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

#C7B7A0

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#B5B8B1

Daylight 5500K

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

#B4BCC4

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.

#9781B3

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: #B5B8B1;

CSS — background

background-color: #B5B8B1;

CSS Variable

--color-metal-.03: #B5B8B1;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'metal-.03': '#B5B8B1' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#B5B8B1] text-[#B5B8B1]

SCSS

$metal-.03: #B5B8B1;

Similar Colors

Coventry Gray

#B8BAB6 · ΔE 1.9

Gray Horse

#B9BBB1 · ΔE 2.0

Sea Haze

#B3B5AB · ΔE 2.0

Metropolitan

#BABDB8 · ΔE 2.2

Bone Black

#B9B8AE · ΔE 2.2

Imperial Gray

#B0B9B2 · ΔE 2.2

Ozark Shadows

#B6B4AC · ΔE 2.3

Iced Marble

#B0B9B3 · ΔE 2.3

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 #B5B8B1?

#B5B8B1 is Metal .03, a soft neutral with a cool undertone.

Is #B5B8B1 warm or cool?

Metal .03 reads cool, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Metal .03?

Metal .03 works well in living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens. Designers typically use it for main walls, trim, accents.

What colors pair well with Metal .03?

Metal .03 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 Metal .03?

You can download Metal .03 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 Metal .03?

The hex code is #B5B8B1. In RGB it's 181, 184, 177, and in HSL it's 86°, 5%, 71%.

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