RAL Effect

RAL Effect 840-M

#494440

RGB 73, 68, 64 · HSL 27°, 7%, 27% · CMYK 0, 7, 12, 71

RAL Effect 840-M is #494440 in HEX, rgb(73, 68, 64), cmyk(0%, 7%, 12%, 71%).

RAL Effect 840-M, RAL Effect 840-M, is a cool color from the RAL Effect — the European standard used to specify exact colors for paints and coatings. Its hex value is #494440, or rgb(73, 68, 64). It's commonly specified for metallic and pearlescent finishes on vehicles, façades and design objects. Below are its exact color codes (HEX, RGB, CMYK, HSL), the nearest real interior paints across 16 brands so you can match it on a wall, and similar RAL shades.

HEX → RAL converter
HEX#494440
RGB73, 68, 64
HSL27°, 7%, 27%
HSV27°, 12%, 29%
CMYK0, 7, 12, 71
Decimal4801600
CSS RGBrgb(73, 68, 64)
CSS HSLhsl(27, 7%, 27%)

Dulux

Canal BrownS11A8

Near-exact · #4A4441

PPG

Phantom Mist1002-7

ΔE 1.1 · #4B4441

Sherwin-Williams

SealskinSW7675

ΔE 1.6 · #48423C

Kilz

Dark SkyRM250

ΔE 1.8 · #464541

Benjamin Moore

Night2134-10

ΔE 1.9 · #4C443E

Valspar

Fired Earth6011-1

ΔE 1.9 · #4B4845

Behr

Espresso BeansPPU5-1

ΔE 1.9 · #4C443E

Farrow & Ball

Tanner's Brown255

ΔE 2.5 · #4D4746

Hallman-Lindsay

November Storms543

ΔE 2.6 · #423F3B

Vista Paint

Opening NightK-824

ΔE 2.7 · #42423E

Dunn-Edwards

MinkDE6392

ΔE 3.2 · #524A46

IKEA

IKEA09191

ΔE 4.9 · #574C49

RAL

Grey Brown8019

ΔE 4.9 · #403A3A

Colorhouse

Nourish .05Nourish-05

ΔE 5.6 · #53453C

Kobra

Black44

ΔE 6.8 · #383737

Dutch Boy

Seal of GreyVS-9301

ΔE 8.5 · #575757

Light Reflectance Value (LRV)

6/100

Very Dark

0 · DarkLight · 100

Absorbs almost all light — dramatic and cocooning. Needs strong artificial lighting and works best as an accent or in well-lit rooms.

Undertone

TemperatureNeutral MasstoneOrange UndertoneYellow

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

Complementary

#494440
#40454A

Analogous

#4A4041
#494440
#4A4940

Triadic

#494440
#404A44
#44404A

Monochromatic

#0E0D0C
#211E1C
#494440
#736A64
#99918A

Shades and tints of RAL Effect 840-M run from a pale tint down to a deep shade — same hue and saturation, lightness stepped. Each rung below shows its exact HEX code; tap any to copy it.

Tint #F1F0EF
Tint #C9C5C1
Tint #A19A93
Tint #776F68
Base #494440
Shade #3F3B37
Shade #35312E
Shade #2B2825
Shade #211E1C

Lighter

#726963
#968F89
#C1BEBB

Darker

#3B3733
#292623
#181614

Saturation

#464543
#4A4440
#6A4120

Best Rooms

living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens

Best Uses

main walls, trim, accents

Pairs With

soft whites, natural wood, brass, matte black trim

Aa

vs White

9.61:1

AAA

Aa

vs Black

2.18:1

Fail

Deuteranopia

#494440
#474540

Original → Simulated

Protanopia

#494440
#454541

Original → Simulated

Tritanopia

#494440
#494344

Original → Simulated

Quiet · Versatile

RAL Effect 840-M 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
#76604B

Warm Bulb 2700K

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

#494440

Daylight 5500K

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

#63656F

Cool Bulb 6500K

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

#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.

#2C3C49

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.

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 · Doors · Mouldings

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.

You'll need

4.0 litres

1.06 US gallons · room for one touch-up coat. Buy slightly more to ensure single-batch match.

CSS — color
color: #494440;
CSS — background
background-color: #494440;
CSS Variable
--color-ral-effect-840-m: #494440;
Tailwind v3 — config
colors: { 'ral-effect-840-m': '#494440' }
Tailwind — arbitrary
bg-[#494440] text-[#494440]
SCSS
$ral-effect-840-m: #494440;

What is a RAL color?

RAL is the European color-matching standard used to specify exact colors for paints and coatings. Each code — like RAL 840-M from the RAL Effect — maps to one defined color, so a manufacturer or painter anywhere produces the identical result. It's used first and foremost on window frames, doors, façades, gates, railings and powder-coated metalwork.

Matching RAL 840-M on interior walls

RAL is defined for industrial coatings, not interior wall paint — so to paint a room in this color you match it to a real interior brand. The Paint Matches above show the nearest RAL Effect 840-M equivalent across 16 brands (Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams, Behr, Dulux and more), each with its code, so you can take RAL 840-M straight to a can.

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.

What color is RAL 840-M?

RAL 840-M is RAL Effect 840-M. On screen it is approximately #494440 (rgb 73, 68, 64).

What is RAL 840-M in RGB?

RAL 840-M is approximately rgb(73, 68, 64). Its HSL and CMYK values are in the color codes above.

What paint matches RAL 840-M?

See “Paint Matches” above — it shows the nearest real paint in 16 brands (Benjamin Moore, Sherwin-Williams, Behr, Dulux and more) so you can paint a wall to match this RAL color.

What is the HEX code for RAL 840-M?

RAL 840-M (RAL Effect 840-M) is approximately #494440 in HEX — the standard sRGB equivalent for screen.

What is RAL 840-M in CMYK?

RAL 840-M converts to roughly cmyk(0%, 7%, 12%, 71%). For exact ink, confirm against a physical RAL fan deck.

Are RAL hex values exact?

They're the standard sRGB equivalent for screen. RAL is defined for physical coatings, so always confirm critical color against a physical RAL fan deck.

← All RAL colors