NEUTRALS

Best in Show

#B9B7BD

RGB 185, 183, 189 · HSL 260°, 4%, 73% · CMYK 2, 3, 0, 26

Best in Show is #B9B7BD in HEX — rgb(185, 183, 189), hsl(260°, 4%, 73%), cmyk(2%, 3%, 0%, 26%).

Best in Show pulls into the light end of the neutrals spectrum — HSL 260°, 4%, 73%. 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#B9B7BD

RGB185, 183, 189

HSL260°, 4%, 73%

HSV260°, 3%, 74%

CMYK2, 3, 0, 26

Decimal12171197

CSS RGBrgb(185, 183, 189)

CSS HSLhsl(260, 4%, 73%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Vista Paint

Let It Rain C-517

ΔE 1.3 · #B7B7BB

Hallman-Lindsay

Let It Rain 518

ΔE 1.6 · #B6B8BD

Dulux

Musing SG6A1

ΔE 1.7 · #BEBBC0

Behr

Winter Cocoa 730B-4

ΔE 1.8 · #B9B4B8

Dunn-Edwards

Silver Bullet DE6381

ΔE 1.9 · #B6B5B8

PPG

Silver Bells 1003-3

ΔE 2.5 · #B8B4B6

Sherwin-Williams

Swanky Gray SW6261

ΔE 2.5 · #B5B1B5

Benjamin Moore

AF-ter 1452

ΔE 2.9 · #C2BABE

Kilz

Hippopotamus Gray RL100

ΔE 3 · #B2B3B5

Valspar

Voyage 4006-1B

ΔE 3.1 · #B5BBC0

IKEA

IKEA155 155

ΔE 4.4 · #AAB1B8

RAL

Agate Grey 7038

ΔE 5.3 · #C3C3C3

Farrow & Ball

Parma Gray 27

ΔE 5.7 · #B2BFC5

Dutch Boy

Savoy DCP-1316

ΔE 6.2 · #C8C8D0

Colorhouse

Air .07 Air-07

ΔE 6.6 · #CEC4C5

Kobra

Silver 47

ΔE 8.9 · #CDCECD

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

48/100

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 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

#B9B7BD

#BBBDB7

Analogous

#B7B8BD

#B9B7BD

#BCB7BD

Triadic

#B9B7BD

#BDB9B7

#B7BDB9

Split-Complementary

#B9B7BD

#BDBCB7

#B8BDB7

Tetradic

#B9B7BD

#BDB7B8

#BBBDB7

#B7BDBC

Monochromatic

#6C6972

#929098

#B9B7BD

#E0DFE2

#F2F2F3

Rectangle

#B9B7BD

#BDB7BB

#BBBDB7

#B7BDB9

Compound

#B9B7BD

#BCB7BD

#BBBDB7

#B8BDB7

Variations

Lighter

#C7C6CA

#D5D4D7

#E7E6E8

Darker

#939099

#65626B

#3B393E

Saturation

#BAB9BB

#B9B7BD

#AE96DE

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

1.99:1

Fail

vs Black

10.57:1

AAA

Deuteranopia

#B9B7BD

#B7B8BE

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#B9B7BD

#B7B7BC

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#B9B7BD

#B8B8B7

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Quiet · Versatile

Best in Show 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

#CAB6A9

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#B9B7BD

Daylight 5500K

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

#B7BBCD

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.

#A6B686

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: #B9B7BD;

CSS — background

background-color: #B9B7BD;

CSS Variable

--color-best-in-show: #B9B7BD;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'best-in-show': '#B9B7BD' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#B9B7BD] text-[#B9B7BD]

SCSS

$best-in-show: #B9B7BD;

Similar Colors

After the Rain

#C1B9BD · ΔE 2.7

Silent Night

#B0B4B7 · ΔE 3.2

Iced Mauve

#C4BBC0 · ΔE 3.3

Piano Concerto

#C4BCC0 · ΔE 3.3

Thundercloud Gray

#B8BDC0 · ΔE 3.4

African Violet

#C1B9C4 · ΔE 3.7

Through the Looking Glass

#C0BCBC · ΔE 3.8

Violetta

#C4B7BB · ΔE 4.3

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 #B9B7BD?

#B9B7BD is Best in Show, a soft neutral with a cool undertone.

Is #B9B7BD warm or cool?

Best in Show reads cool, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Best in Show?

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

What colors pair well with Best in Show?

Best in Show 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 Best in Show?

You can download Best in Show 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 Best in Show?

The hex code is #B9B7BD. In RGB it's 185, 183, 189, and in HSL it's 260°, 4%, 73%.

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