Cathedral Gray vs Downtown Gray
Both from Behr's palette. Both sit in the grey family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. They have nearly identical light reflectance values (40 vs 40), so they'll read as similarly Medium in most lighting conditions. Cathedral Gray runs red while Downtown Gray is decidedly yellow and red, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. At ΔE 2.8, these are close — the kind of difference that matters when choosing between them, but doesn't read strongly in a finished room. Below you'll find 2 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Cathedral Gray vs Downtown Gray in Real Spaces
2 real rooms side by side. Cathedral Gray and Downtown Gray are close enough that the difference can be hard to judge from a chip alone — these photos show how each reads at scale, across different spaces and lighting conditions.
Living Room
In a living room, color works across both daylight and evening light — the same wall can read very differently at noon and at 8pm. The two are close enough that the choice comes down to finer qualities — undertone, texture, what the color sits next to.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. At this scale the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side, as shown here, to reliably tell them apart.
Color Details
Cathedral Gray vs Downtown Gray Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Cathedral Gray on one side and Downtown Gray on the other.
Digital color is approximate. These simulations are generated from the manufacturer's hex values and overlaid on grayscale room photos — your screen's calibration, brightness, and viewing angle all affect how they render. Before committing to either color, test physical samples in your own space under the light you actually live with.
More Cathedral Gray comparisons
See how Cathedral Gray stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 40), opening up a space where Cathedral Gray encloses it.
At LRV 69 vs 40, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
Cathedral Gray reflects far more light (LRV 40 vs 6), opening up a space where Iron Ore encloses it.
A 11-point LRV gap (52 vs 40) makes Purbeck Stone the marginally brighter of the two.
A 10-point LRV gap (40 vs 30) makes Cathedral Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
Mizzle reads slightly lighter (LRV 52 vs 40), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 60 vs 40, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 40), opening up a space where Cathedral Gray encloses it.
Cathedral Gray reflects far more light (LRV 40 vs 27), opening up a space where Denim Drift encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 43 vs 40), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 40 vs 4, Cathedral Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 40), opening up a space where Cathedral Gray encloses it.
Cathedral Gray reflects far more light (LRV 40 vs 13), opening up a space where Bancha encloses it.
Hardwick White reads slightly lighter (LRV 44 vs 40), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 84 vs 40, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 40 vs 21, Cathedral Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 40), opening up a space where Cathedral Gray encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 40), opening up a space where Cathedral Gray encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 40), opening up a space where Cathedral Gray encloses it.
Cathedral Gray reflects far more light (LRV 40 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 40), opening up a space where Cathedral Gray encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 41 vs 40), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 68 vs 40, Calamine is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 40 vs 25, Cathedral Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Cathedral Gray reflects far more light (LRV 40 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
Saybrook Sage reads slightly lighter (LRV 45 vs 40), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
A 9-point LRV gap (40 vs 31) makes Cathedral Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 40 vs 7, Cathedral Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 40 vs 24, Cathedral Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 57 vs 40, Guilford Green is decisively the brighter choice.