NEUTRALS

Always Taupe

#BEB4B1

RGB 190, 180, 177 · HSL 14°, 9%, 72% · CMYK 0, 5, 7, 25

Always Taupe is #BEB4B1 in HEX — rgb(190, 180, 177), hsl(14°, 9%, 72%), cmyk(0%, 5%, 7%, 25%).

Always Taupe pulls into the light end of the neutrals spectrum — HSL 14°, 9%, 72%. 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#BEB4B1

RGB190, 180, 177

HSL14°, 9%, 72%

HSV14°, 7%, 75%

CMYK0, 5, 7, 25

Decimal12498097

CSS RGBrgb(190, 180, 177)

CSS HSLhsl(14, 9%, 72%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Kilz

Always Taupe RK170

Exact match

Sherwin-Williams

Queen Anne Lilac SW0021

ΔE 0.9 · #C0B6B4

Vista Paint

North Island C-551

ΔE 1.3 · #BDB6B2

Dulux

Soft Metal S05A2

ΔE 1.4 · #BAB3B1

Valspar

Winter Calm 4001-1B

ΔE 1.6 · #BBB4B3

Hallman-Lindsay

North Island 552

ΔE 1.7 · #BCB6B4

Behr

Vintage Mauve PPU17-11

ΔE 1.9 · #BAAFAD

PPG

Jack Rabbit 1014-4

ΔE 1.9 · #C0B2B1

Farrow & Ball

Dove Tale 267

ΔE 2 · #BBB1AB

Dunn-Edwards

Young Fawn DE6038

ΔE 2.2 · #C3B4B3

Benjamin Moore

Elephant 2109-50

ΔE 3 · #B6ACA8

Dutch Boy

Drifting Sand DCP-0218

ΔE 4.2 · #B6B2A9

IKEA

IKEA133 133

ΔE 4.6 · #C2ADAB

Colorhouse

Metal .03 Metal-03

ΔE 5.4 · #B5B8B1

RAL

Agate Grey 7038

ΔE 6.3 · #C3C3C3

Kobra

Silver 47

ΔE 9.6 · #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

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

#BEB4B1

#B1BBBE

Analogous

#BEB1B5

#BEB4B1

#BEBBB1

Triadic

#BEB4B1

#B1BEB4

#B4B1BE

Split-Complementary

#BEB4B1

#B1BEBB

#B1B5BE

Tetradic

#BEB4B1

#B5BEB1

#B1BBBE

#BBB1BE

Monochromatic

#756661

#9B8C87

#BEB4B1

#E1DCDB

#F3F2F1

Rectangle

#BEB4B1

#BBBEB1

#B1BBBE

#B4B1BE

Compound

#BEB4B1

#BEBBB1

#B1BBBE

#B1B5BE

Variations

Lighter

#CBC3C1

#D7D2D1

#E8E5E4

Darker

#9D8D89

#6F605B

#413835

Saturation

#BAB7B6

#BEB4B1

#DFA391

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

2.03:1

Fail

vs Black

10.35:1

AAA

Deuteranopia

#BEB4B1

#B9B7B2

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#BEB4B1

#B6B6B1

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#BEB4B1

#BEB4B4

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Quiet · Versatile

Always Taupe 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

#CEB4A0

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#BEB4B1

Daylight 5500K

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

#BBB9C4

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.

#83A9B5

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: #BEB4B1;

CSS — background

background-color: #BEB4B1;

CSS Variable

--color-always-taupe: #BEB4B1;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'always-taupe': '#BEB4B1' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#BEB4B1] text-[#BEB4B1]

SCSS

$always-taupe: #BEB4B1;

Similar Colors

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#C2B5B7 · ΔE 3.0

Nightingale

#B6B4B2 · ΔE 3.1

San Antonio Gray

#B4B2AE · ΔE 3.4

Elephant Gray

#B5ABA7 · ΔE 3.4

La Paloma Gray

#B8B4AC · ΔE 3.6

Silver Dollar

#B3B1B0 · ΔE 3.6

Stone Harbor

#B4AFA8 · ΔE 3.7

Through the Looking Glass

#C0BCBC · ΔE 3.8

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 #BEB4B1?

#BEB4B1 is Always Taupe, a soft neutral with a cool undertone.

Is #BEB4B1 warm or cool?

Always Taupe reads cool, which influences how it interacts with surrounding tones and natural light.

What rooms work best with Always Taupe?

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

What colors pair well with Always Taupe?

Always Taupe 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 Always Taupe?

You can download Always Taupe 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 Always Taupe?

The hex code is #BEB4B1. In RGB it's 190, 180, 177, and in HSL it's 14°, 9%, 72%.

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