YELLOWS

Shale

#C4BEB2

RGB 196, 190, 178 · HSL 40°, 13%, 73% · CMYK 0, 3, 9, 23

Shale is #C4BEB2 in HEX — rgb(196, 190, 178), hsl(40°, 13%, 73%), cmyk(0%, 3%, 9%, 23%).

Shale pulls into the light end of the yellows spectrum — HSL 40°, 13%, 73%. 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#C4BEB2

RGB196, 190, 178

HSL40°, 13%, 73%

HSV40°, 9%, 77%

CMYK0, 3, 9, 23

Decimal12893874

CSS RGBrgb(196, 190, 178)

CSS HSLhsl(40, 13%, 73%)

Paint Matches — this color across 16 brands

Benjamin Moore

Shale 861

Exact match

Sherwin-Williams

Skyline Steel SW1015

ΔE 0.6 · #C6BFB3

IKEA

IKEA123 123

ΔE 0.7 · #C5BEB1

Vista Paint

Silver Spree K-925

ΔE 0.8 · #C2BDB0

Dulux

Beige Mystery SN3B2

ΔE 0.8 · #C2BDB2

Farrow & Ball

Purbeck Stone 275

ΔE 1.1 · #C4BEB4

Hallman-Lindsay

Hearthstone 567

ΔE 1.2 · #C7BEB2

Valspar

Frappé 6003-1B

ΔE 1.6 · #BFBAAF

Behr

Fortress Stone PPU8-17

ΔE 1.7 · #C5C0B1

PPG

Ashen 1023-3

ΔE 1.8 · #C9BFB2

Kilz

Trinket TB-23

ΔE 2.1 · #C4BAB0

Dunn-Edwards

Play on Gray DE6228

ΔE 3.3 · #BAB6A9

Colorhouse

Nourish .02 Nourish-02

ΔE 4 · #C5C2AF

RAL

Silk Grey 7044

ΔE 4.7 · #CAC4B0

Dutch Boy

Drifting Sand DCP-0218

ΔE 4.8 · #B6B2A9

Kobra

Silver 47

ΔE 8.5 · #CDCECD

Light Reflectance & Undertone

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

52/100

Light

0 · DarkLight · 100

Reflects plenty of light and keeps spaces feeling open and airy while still showing clear colour. A safe, flexible choice for living areas.

Undertone

TemperatureWarm MasstoneOrange UndertoneYellow

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

Color Theory

Complementary

#C4BEB2

#B1B7C3

Analogous

#C3B4B1

#C4BEB2

#C0C3B1

Triadic

#C4BEB2

#B1C3BD

#BDB1C3

Split-Complementary

#C4BEB2

#B1C0C3

#B4B1C3

Tetradic

#C4BEB2

#B1C3B4

#B1B7C3

#C3B1C0

Monochromatic

#7C725F

#A29986

#C4BEB2

#E4E2DC

#F4F3F1

Rectangle

#C4BEB2

#B7C3B1

#B1B7C3

#BDB1C3

Compound

#C4BEB2

#C0C3B1

#B1B7C3

#B4B1C3

Variations

Lighter

#CFCAC1

#DAD7D1

#E9E8E5

Darker

#A39A86

#756B58

#443F33

Saturation

#BDBBB7

#C3BDB1

#E1C793

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

1.85:1

Fail

vs Black

11.36:1

AAA

Deuteranopia

#C4BEB2

#C2BFB3

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#C4BEB2

#BFBFB4

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#C4BEB2

#C5BCBE

Original → Simulated

Color Psychology

Bright · Optimistic

Shale 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

#D2BBA1

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#C4BEB2

Daylight 5500K

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

#C0C0C5

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.

#8696B6

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: #C4BEB2;

CSS — background

background-color: #C4BEB2;

CSS Variable

--color-shale: #C4BEB2;

Tailwind v3 — config

colors: { 'shale': '#C4BEB2' }

Tailwind — arbitrary

bg-[#C4BEB2] text-[#C4BEB2]

SCSS

$shale: #C4BEB2;

Similar Colors

Shale

#C3BDB1 · ΔE 0.4

Winterwood

#C1BFB1 · ΔE 1.9

Cumulus Cloud

#C5C1B8 · ΔE 2.1

Thunder

#BDB8AD · ΔE 2.3

Cape Hatteras Sand

#BEB8AE · ΔE 2.4

Seattle Mist

#C9C5B8 · ΔE 2.5

Annapolis Gray

#C9BEAF · ΔE 2.5

Old Soul

#C4BAAB · ΔE 2.6

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 #C4BEB2?

#C4BEB2 is Shale, a soft yellow with a warm undertone.

Is #C4BEB2 warm or cool?

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

What rooms work best with Shale?

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

What colors pair well with Shale?

Shale 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 Shale?

You can download Shale 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 Shale?

The hex code is #C4BEB2. In RGB it's 196, 190, 178, and in HSL it's 40°, 13%, 73%.

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