Ashen Tan
996 · #C9BEAF · LRV 51 — warm red-orange tone, light — bounces daylight without going clinical.
- 1Dorian Gray39
- 2Pashmina44
- 3Ashen Tan51
- 4Agreeable Gray60
- 5Pale Oak69
What Color Is Ashen Tan, Really?
Ashen Tan reads as a warm red-orange tone — light — bounces daylight without going clinical. The notes below cover how Benjamin Moore 996 behaves in different light and the closest matches at competing US brands.
Best Rooms and Uses for Ashen Tan
Ashen Tan is an easy whole-room color for living spaces and bedrooms, and light enough to carry onto trim or a ceiling if you want a soft, seamless look. Greige-leaning neutrals like this are the safe whole-home choice when you want warmth without committing to a color.
How Lighting Changes Ashen Tan
At LRV 51, Ashen Tan is a light color that bounces daylight around a room without tipping into stark white. Its orange undertone is the part to watch: it gets picked up by whatever sits next to it, so test it against your trim, floor and the room's main light before committing. It holds its undertone in most exposures, which is what makes light shades like this so forgiving room to room.
Most complaints about Ashen Tan are a light mismatch. Upload a photo of your actual room and see it on your walls — then ask for the same wall in north light or evening lamps before you buy a single sample.
Need It From Another Brand?
Any paint counter can custom-tint Benjamin Moore 996 directly. If you would rather stay in one brand's own deck, these are the closest stock matches, measured as ΔE2000. Under 2 is a difference you will not see on the wall.
| Brand | Closest color | ΔE | LRV | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sherwin-Williams | MinimalistSW 9611 · Sherwin-Williams | 0.8 | 52 | Color page → |
| Behr | Creamy MushroomPPU5-13 · Behr | 1.3 | 52 | Color page → |
| Valspar | Feathers of a DoveM111 · Valspar | 3.0 | 53.9 | Color page → |
| PPG / Glidden | AshenPPG1023-3 · PPG / Glidden | 1.1 | 53 | Color page → |
| Glidden | AshenPPG1023-3 · Glidden | 0.9 | 53 | Color page → |
| Dutch Boy | Ellipsis420-2DB · Dutch Boy | 1.8 | 54 | Color page → |
Similar Benjamin Moore Colors
The nearest shades to Ashen Tan within Benjamin Moore's own range, ranked by perceptual color distance — useful when you want the same look a touch lighter, darker, or warmer.
WCAG 2.1: AA is 4.5 : 1 for normal text, 3 : 1 for large text, AAA is 7 : 1.
Coordinated palette
Generated by hue-rotating #C9BEAF in HSL space. Pair Ashen Tan with one accent and one neutral — the swatches below are starting points, not final picks.
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