The Color Digest · Compare
Settled, side by side
Stonington Gray
Benjamin Moore · HC-170
The grey that does not pick a side
Pure White
Sherwin-Williams · SW 7005
The white that stays out of the way
In real rooms
Every room, each colorThe difference
Read from the numbersPure White is the lighter of the two at LRV 84, 24.6 points above Stonington Gray at LRV 59.36. Both read neutral. Stonington Gray is a grays, Pure White a whites. For a whole room, Pure White is the safer, more forgiving choice thanks to its higher LRV, while Stonington Gray is the bolder pick.
How they read
In their own wordsStonington Gray is Benjamin Moore's most balanced light grey — neither warm nor cool, with a faint green-blue base that keeps it from going purple, the failing of so many greys. At LRV 59 it is light enough for a small room and grey enough to read as a color against white trim.
Pure White is one of Sherwin-Williams' most-specified whites for a simple reason: it has almost no agenda. A trace of grey keeps it from glaring, a trace of warmth keeps it from turning blue, and at LRV 84 it is bright without being stark. It is the white you choose when the art, the furniture or the view is the point.