Sherwin Williams Balanced Beige: LRV, Undertones & a Little More
If you’re looking for a beige with a bit more meat on its bones, Balanced Beige has you covered. This and super subtle undertones are just a few reasons why Balanced Beige might be your new best friend, as it bridges the gap between icy, cool colors and overly golden, warm colors. It’s also WAY beyond your standard builder beige.
Let’s find out why…
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WHAT TYPE OF COLOR IS BALANCED BEIGE?
Balanced Beige is a beige, which means it’s a warm paint color. However, it’s atypical as it doesn’t have the usual golden undertone that can be found in some of the more popular, older beige paint colors. In fact, it leans slightly into gray, but this doesn’t make it a taupe or a greige—it’s definitely beige.
If you have north-facing light, you may find Balanced Beige leaning a bit more into that subtle gray, while still holding a soft, passive warmth, which can be a nice balance to cooler northern or afternoon eastern light. However, with south-facing or afternoon western light, Balanced Beige will be in its full glory, leaning that wink warmer without going TOASTY warm.
North, East, South, West – Which Paint Color is the Best?
WHAT’S THE LRV OF BALANCED BEIGE?
Balanced Beige has an LRV of 46. This puts it on the light-medium end of things—not as fresh and bright as its lighter version, Accessible Beige, but also not heavily weighed down or as dark as its cousin, Tony Taupe.
With this kind of depth and gray backdrop, Balanced Beige can look a bit heavy in a low-light room, especially if that room also has northern light. Balanced Beige is at its best in reasonably well-lit rooms.
Not sure what LRV is? It could save your paint-lovin’ life – read all about it HERE.
WHAT ARE BALANCED BEIGE’S UNDERTONES?
Balanced Beige has VERY passive undertones. Most definitely, a bit of gray, but on the odd occasion, you might see Balanced Beige pick up a flash or green or pink. It’s not super inclined either way, but being so non-committal, it’s super subjective to its environment. For example, putting it with finishes that need a pink undertone could seem a bit too green ‘in comparison.’ On the other hand, if you have finishes that cater to green, it might seem a bit too taupe!
While this makes Balanced Beige flexible, it can also be a bit unpredictable, which is why sampling is SO IMPORTANT!
Paint sampling just got a whole lot easier…
Get your Peel & Stick sample of Balanced Beige HERE!
WHAT’S THE BEST WHITE TRIM COLOR WITH BALANCED BEIGE?
Balanced Beige is reasonably easy to please as long as your trim isn’t overly yellow. Here are a few of my favorites!
Balanced Beige also looks gorgeous with darker wood trim…
SHOULD I Paint My Wood Cabinets White? A QUESTIONNAIRE
The 4 Best White Paint Colors from Sherwin Williams
IS BALANCED BEIGE A GOOD EXTERIOR PAINT COLOR?
If you want a warm paint color that isn’t traditionally golden, Balanced Beige could work well on the exterior of your home. It suits a wide variety of brick and roof colors but doesn’t suit as many stone surfaces. Sample and compare it with similar shades to see which works best with your finishes.
Notice how different Balanced Beige looks depending on your type and amount of natural light (above and below).
5 Tips for Choosing an Exterior Paint Color
WHAT COLORS ARE SIMILAR TO BALANCED BEIGE?
There are a ton of paint colors I like to compare with Balanced Beige. But to narrow it down to my favorites, hmmm…
WHAT COLORS GO WITH BALANCED BEIGE?
- Balanced Beige doesn’t like to be partnered with gray or greige paint colors that are lighter than it (so LRV higher than 46)
- Balanced Beige LOVES earth tones as long as they have a solid neutral base to calm them down (Sherwin Williams Argos and Sherwin Williams Dovetail)
- Balanced Beige looks especially nice with cooler colors, such as Sherwin Williams Gray Matters, Magnetic Gray, and many more. But remember, just because a color suits Balanced Beige, doesn’t mean it will suit the room it’s going in and its exposures, so be sure to do your research!
- If you love medium to dark shades of green, you and Balanced Beige have something in common!
The Best Gray and Greige Paint Colors from Sherwin Williams
READ MORE
The Best Medium, Stone-Inspired Beige, Taupe, & Greige Paint Colors
Paint Color Review of Sherwin Williams Shittake & Loggia
The Best Paint Colors for Cream Kitchen Cabinets & Trim
Paint Color Review – Sherwin Williams Accessible Beige
Paint Color Review – Sherwin Williams Anew Gray
Not sure which paint color is best for YOUR home?
Check out my Online Paint Color Consulting – I’d love to help!
ORIGINALLY WRITTEN IN 2021, UPDATED IN 2024!