Color guide · PPG / Glidden · Gray

Cool Charcoal

PPG1007-6 · #817B77 · LRV 20 · neutral with no strong undertone

PPG1007-6 · #817B77 · LRV 20 — neutral with no strong undertone, dark — high drama, needs strong daylight or warm bulbs.

Cool CharcoalPPG / Glidden · PPG1007-6
The color, edge to edge.Use your own photo →
Cool Charcoal
PPG / GLIDDEN · PPG1007-6 · #817B77
Brand · codePPG / GliddenPPG1007-6 · all PPG / Glidden grays
LRV20Dark — high drama, needs strong daylight or warm bulbs.
Undertoneneutral with no strong undertone
FamilyGray
Hex · RGB · HSL#817B77 · 129, 123, 119 · 24°, 4%, 49%Display values from the brand. Match it at another brand
Sheen we recommendEggshell on walls · satin on trim and cabinetsWhich sheen where, explained
Where it sits, light to dark
  1. 1Black Fox7
  2. 2Pewter Green12
  3. 3Cool Charcoal20
  4. 4Stardew43
  5. 5Quietude48
Undertone and depth

What Color Is Cool Charcoal, Really?

Cool Charcoal reads as a neutral with no strong undertone — dark — high drama, needs strong daylight or warm bulbs. The notes below cover how PPG / Glidden PPG1007-6 behaves in different light and the closest matches at competing US brands.

Room by room

Best Rooms and Uses for Cool Charcoal

Cool Charcoal works best as a feature — a single wall, built-ins, a study or dining room — rather than wrapping a whole bright space. Grays like this read as a modern neutral and sit comfortably alongside both warm woods and cool metals.

Light by light

How Lighting Changes Cool Charcoal

With an LRV of 20, Cool Charcoal is a deep, dramatic shade. It soaks up light in north-facing rooms and looks richest where strong daylight hits it. Because it carries almost no measurable hue, it stays a true neutral and pairs cleanly with nearly any trim or floor. Warm artificial light softens it; cool LED can make it look flat, so match your bulbs to the mood you want.

Test it in your light, not a showroom's

Most complaints about Cool Charcoal 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.

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Same color, different store

Need It From Another Brand?

Any paint counter can custom-tint PPG / Glidden PPG1007-6 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.

Same deck, next chip over

Similar PPG / Glidden Colors

The nearest shades to Cool Charcoal within PPG / Glidden's own range, ranked by perceptual color distance — useful when you want the same look a touch lighter, darker, or warmer.

Contrast, for text and signage
Black text on Cool Charcoal · 5 : 1 · passes AAWhite text on Cool Charcoal · 4.2 : 1 · large text only

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 #817B77 in HSL space. Pair Cool Charcoal with one accent and one neutral — the swatches below are starting points, not final picks.

COMPLEMENTARY
#817B77 + #777D81
TRIADIC
#817B77 · #77817B · #7B7781
ANALOGOUS
#817778 · #817B77 · #818077

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Jessica Williams

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