THE MOST POPULAR Warm Neutral Color: Accessible Beige
If you said the word ‘beige’ to me a few years ago, I would’ve started twitchin’ and drinkin’ in the corner just thinking about all the ‘builder beiges’ from the early 2000s. But beige has come a LOOOONG way, baby, and Accessible Beige is one of my FAVE’s.
Why? Let’s take a closer look…
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WHAT TYPE OF COLOR IS SW ACCESSIBLE BEIGE?
Accessible Beige is a beige paint color, which means it’s a WARM paint color. With its unique blend of undertones and LRV, it’s also one of the more popular beige paint colors on the market!
However, as I alluded to earlier, beige has a bad rap, thanks to the early 2000s. Does Accessible Beige fall into that category of colors? HECK NO—it’snot THAT kind of beige; instead, it’s bodacious, beautiful, and begging to be on your walls!
When I have E-Design clients who like warm gray/greige paint colors, this one comes up quite often—even though it’s beige.
Why?
Well, if a client has a north-facing room, they sometimes find Accessible Beige grays out just enough to hit their comfort zone without falling cold and flat like some greige or gray paint colors can.
Before, this beautiful foyer was heavy-looking and dated…
After, Accessible Beige offers a more modern approach to a traditional style…
WHAT’S THE LRV OF ACCESSIBLE BEIGE?
Accessible Beige has an LRV of 58, so it’s not quite in my magical range, but it’s getting there.Not sure what LRV is? You get three slaps with a wet noodle and should probably read this blog post—it might just save your paint-lovin’life!
In this next photo (before), my client’s walls flashed a murky goldy-green, which did nothing for the home or its wood finishes and furnishings.
After (below), the LRV of Accessible Beige brightens the space considerably while keeping things soft and subtle. Everything comes to life—not just the furniture but also the wood cabinets, flooring, and window trims.
With an LRV of 58, you’ll find that Accessible Beige is, generally speaking, a ‘light’ color, although it’s not on the HIGH end of the scale. In the above photo, you’ll see that on walls with an average amount of light, this neutral color holds itself quite well. However, where it gets direct hits of light, it washes out, which is natural for any color with an LRV above 55 or so (and the sun WILL move its way along…or the earth will – whatever).
The Ultimate Guide to Choosing Paint Colors with LRV
WHAT ARE ACCESSIBLE BEIGE’S UNDERTONES?
When you look at Accessible Beige, you’re really looking at a beige with a feather-light, grayish undertone. A lot of the more old-school beige paint colors can flash quite yellow or orange—not this one. Accessible Beige is more soft, subtle, and neutral as it leans a bit to the gray side. Can it be TOO gray? In some lights, yes, but that’s also open to perception, as one person’s ‘too gray’ is another person’s ‘just perfect!’
As shown in this next image, this is as cool as I’ve ever seen Accessible Beige look. This also shows how much a color can change in one room…
Aside from their main undertone (usually orange), beiges can pick up a touch of yellow, green, or pink. In the ODD light, Accessible Beige can pick up a weeee willy wink o’ green, most often with southern exposure. It’s subtle, but if you have an aversion, sample it carefully to see how it settles for you. And while Accessible Beige definitely isn’t inclined toward a pink undertone, it can depend on the surfaces you partner it with. Overall, unlike some beiges, which are super committed to one undertone or another, Accessible Beige is pretty non-committal.
Where this doesn’t work is with finishes that NEED color-commitment. For example, many travertine tiles cater to a strong orange-pink undertone, which can make Accessible Beige look drab and slightly green in comparison.
WHAT COLORS LOOK GOOD WITH ACCESSIBLE BEIGE?
Tim can only WISH I was as flexible as Accessible Beige. Oh honey, if you only knew me 20 years ago – toes to nose, baby! Being neutral with minimal undertones, Accessible Beige is pretty darn accommodating, so let’s look at the type of colors it loves the best:
- some warm grays that are darker than it
- some cooler grays that are, again, darker than it
- it looks wicked pretty with shades of greige, as long as they’re darker than Accessible Beige, including colors like Sherwin Williams Amazing Gray
- earth-toned colors (colors with a decent degree of gray or brown in them), e.g. Sherwin Williams Grizzle Gray, Cyberspace, and various medium to dark shades of green
WHAT COLORS DON’T GO WITH ACCESSIBLE BEIGE?
Accessible Beige doesn’t look as good with gray and greige paint colors with LRVs the same as or higher than itself (59+). It also doesn’t like colors that don’t have gray/brown in them. How do I know? It told me so whenever I tried different pairings. Because Accessible Beige has such an earth tone, it prefers to stay with this family.
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ACCESSIBLE BEIGE IN A SOUTH-FACING ROOM
In a south-facing room, you can expect Accessible Beige to be a soft, neutral beige with just that wink of gray and, more rarely, a nod towards green or pink (depending on your lighting/surrounding finishes). Unlike more saturated shades of beige, it won’t look as suffocatingly warm in the hot southern sun or afternoon western light – but it WILL look warmer than you’d expect!
North, East, South, West – Which Paint Color is the Best?
ACCESSIBLE BEIGE IN A NORTH-FACING ROOM
In a north-facing room, Accessible Beige will look slightly grayed-out, but not so much that it loses its warmth entirely—it is a beige at heart!
You also want to watch it in east-facing rooms. While these rooms get a lovely morning light, the afternoon light can make a color look pretty flat and drab.
Color Review: A Farmhouse Dining Room in Agreeable Gray
Before, a slightly creepy, golden warmth was flashing through this paint color…
After, see how Accessible Beige picks up a subtle gray cast (considering this area doesn’t get much natural light) without becoming greige or flattening out. It also looks beautiful with the wood trim…
IS ACCESSIBLE BEIGE A GOOD EXTERIOR PAINT COLOR?
That’s definitely a loaded question. It all comes down to the color preferences of your roof, stonework, brick, and even your driveway can call the shots! However, with its passive warmth and moderate depth, Accessible Beige has found its way onto many exteriors, including siding and trim.
As shown on this next home, Accessible Beige looks great on the trim and garage door, as it coordinates with the brick…
WHAT’S THE BEST WHITE TRIM OR CABINET COLOR WITH ACCESSIBLE BEIGE?
Accessible Beige is reasonably flexible towards a range of white paint colors, but it DOES draw the line at ones that are overly cream/creamy.
Here are the three best shades…
- Sherwin Williams Pure White
- Benjamin Moore White Dove
- Sherwin Williams Alabaster
Of the three, Alabaster is the tip of the iceberg; anything more yellow is TOO yellow for Accessible Beige (even Alabaster is on the edge).
Sherwin Williams Accessible Beige and Alabaster cabinets/trim
If you’ve been eyeing up Sherwin Williams Creamy or Antique White and hoping to partner these creamy shades with Accessible Beige, I suggest you read this blog post instead.
WHAT COLORS ARE SIMILAR TO ACCESSIBLE BEIGE?
This is the FUN part! You never want to pick a paint color based on how it looks alone. COMPARE COMPARE COMPARE. Often, you end up with a totally different color than the one you THOUGHT you wanted!
ACCESSIBLE BEIGE vs SHIITAKE
While Accessible Beige gets a lot of attention, there’s something to be said for the very comparable Shiitake. Depth-wise, Accessible Beige’s LRV is in the light range with its LRV of 58, whereas Shiitake is in the light-medium world with an LRV of 51. This lower number means Shiitake is a light-medium depth paint color. When you compare these with white trim or cabinets, you’ll see Shiitake offers a bit more contrast.
Where they’re most similar is in their approach to beige. Like Accessible Beige, Shiitake picks up a soft gray backdrop, which calms down its degree of color – at least compared to the usual bunch of beiges. Sure, it can pick up a TOUCH more pink compared to Accessible Beige, but neither shade is overly inclined this way.
ACCESSIBLE BEIGE vs. EDGECOMB GRAY
I love comparing these two popular shades. Starting with LRV/depth, Accessible Beige sits at 58 (on the lower end of the light range), whereas Edgecomb Gray has an LRV of 63.09, making it subtly but noticeably lighter.
Where these two REALLY hit each other head-on is in their general warmth, which is why they’re so fun to compare. Of the two, Accessible Beige is warmer and more beige; Edgecomb Gray is a greige-taupe, so it sits that touch cooler than Accessible Beige, but not by a ton. If you’re looking at Edgecomb Gray and worry it’s too cool, Accessible Beige can be a great alternative to sample. Likewise, if Accessible Beige comes up too warm, Edgecomb Gray could be just the tweak you need!
BTW, of the two, Edgecomb Gray tends to be more flexible for a range of finishes.
FULL Paint Color Review of Benjamin Moore Edgecomb Gray
ACCESSIBLE BEIGE vs. AGREEABLE GRAY
When it comes to popular warm neutrals from Sherwin Williams, these two are near the top of the list. However, they rarely vy for the same spot on your walls as they do different things.
Accessible Beige is a beige; Agreeable Gray is a warm gray-greige-taupe (based on perception). Agreeable Gray is more ‘gray-centric’ than Accessible Beige’s ‘beige-centric’ look. Agreeable Gray is also a smidge lighter than Accessible Beige, with an LRV of 60.
Really, unless your finishes happen to accommodate both of these colors (which isn’t common), there should be a clear winner between the two.
FULL Paint Color Review of Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray
ACCESSIBLE BEIGE vs. NATURAL TAN
With trends leaning warmer, it’s no surprise that we see colors like Accessible Beige and Natural Tan popping up on our Instagram feeds (follow me HERE!)
Accessible Beige left / Natural Tan right.
Natural Tan has an LRV of 65, so it’s a good chunk lighter than Accessible Beige’s 58—in fact, it’s smack-dab in my favorite place. If you have a darker room and worry about Accessible Beige being too dark, Natural Tan could be a good one to check out.
Paint Color Review of Sherwin Williams Natural Tan
However, Natural Tan and Accessible Beige differ in depth, and there are also shifts in undertones. While Natural Tan doesn’t grab a ton of green compared to Accessible Beige, it’s more inclined this way. It’s also a bit more COLORFUL than Accessible Beige, which means its undertones are a bit more noticeable.
READ MORE
The 14 Best Beige Paint Colors for The MODERN HOME
Paint Color Review: Benjamin Moore Grant Beige
Paint Color Review of Sherwin Williams Natural Tan
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Originally written in October 2017, updated December 2024
