Benjamin Moore Celtic Blue#A9B5BC · LRV 0
Celtic Blue reads as a blue / cool — very dark — reads black in most rooms. The notes below cover the spec, what Benjamin Moore ES-31 actually looks like under different light, and the closest matches at competing US brands.
Color spec
| Brand | Benjamin Moore |
| Name | Celtic Blue |
| SKU | ES-31 |
| Hex | #A9B5BC |
| RGB | 169, 181, 188 |
| HSL | 202°, 12%, 70% |
| LRV | 0 |
| Undertone | blue / cool |
| Family | Gray |
About Benjamin Moore Celtic Blue
At LRV 0, Celtic Blue is about as dark as paint gets — it reads near-black on a wall and reveals its character only in direct daylight or under warm bulbs. Its blue 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. In rooms with little natural light it can feel heavy, so reserve it for spaces you want to feel enveloping.
Celtic Blue earns its keep as a statement: accent walls, a front door, cabinetry, a moody powder room, or exterior trim where you want sharp contrast. Grays like this read as a modern neutral and sit comfortably alongside both warm woods and cool metals.
Kompozit alternative
The closest hex in the Kompozit deck, ranked by ΔE2000 (perceptual color difference). ΔE under 2 is indistinguishable to most eyes; under 5 is a very close visual match.
Closest matches at every US brand
9 brands · top 5 each5 closest matches per brand by ΔE2000, computed against each brand's full deck. Tap any swatch for its full single-color spec; tap the brand title to browse all gray from that brand.
Valspar
Dunn-Edwards
PPG / Glidden
Behr
Sherwin-Williams
Backdrop
Farrow & Ball
Clare
Magnolia Home
Similar Benjamin Moore colors
closest in the Benjamin Moore deckThe nearest shades to Celtic Blue within Benjamin Moore's own range, ranked by perceptual color distance — useful when you want the same look a touch lighter, darker, or warmer.
Coordinated palette
Generated by hue-rotating #A9B5BC in HSL space. Pair Celtic Blue with one accent and one neutral — the swatches below are starting points, not final picks.
Accessibility (WCAG contrast)
WCAG 2.1: AA = 4.5:1 normal text · AA Large = 3:1 large text · AAA = 7:1 normal text.