Graphic Charcoal vs Dix Blue
Where Graphic Charcoal belongs to Behr's range, Dix Blue is a Farrow & Ball color. Graphic Charcoal reads as grey, while Dix Blue reads as blue-grey — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. Dix Blue (LRV 41) reflects noticeably more light than Graphic Charcoal (LRV 11), a difference of 30 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. Graphic Charcoal runs blue while Dix Blue is decidedly cool, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 31.4, the contrast is hard to miss. These aren't variations on a theme — they're two different answers to the same question. Below you'll find 5 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Graphic Charcoal vs Dix Blue in Real Spaces
5 real rooms side by side. Seeing Graphic Charcoal and Dix Blue in actual rooms makes the difference concrete; browse the spaces below to get a feel for how each color lives on a wall.
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 LRV gap is large enough that Dix Blue will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Graphic Charcoal would.
Bedroom
The context that matters most in a bedroom is how a color reads under a bedside lamp at night, not under noon daylight. Dix Blue reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Graphic Charcoal.
Bathroom
Bathrooms are one of the few spaces where you're genuinely enclosed by the paint color, which makes the choice between these two more consequential. Dix Blue reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Graphic Charcoal.
House
Seen across an entire facade, subtle tonal differences become pronounced. What reads as nearly the same on a chip often reads as clearly different at scale. Dix Blue reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Graphic Charcoal.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. Dix Blue reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Graphic Charcoal.
Color Details
Graphic Charcoal vs Dix Blue Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Graphic Charcoal on one side and Dix Blue 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 Graphic Charcoal comparisons
See how Graphic Charcoal stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
At LRV 69 vs 11, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
Graphic Charcoal reads slightly lighter (LRV 11 vs 6), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 52 vs 11, Purbeck Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 30 vs 11, Evergreen Fog is decisively the brighter choice.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
At LRV 60 vs 11, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
Denim Drift reflects far more light (LRV 27 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
At LRV 43 vs 11, French Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 7-point LRV gap (11 vs 4) makes Graphic Charcoal the marginally brighter of the two.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
With LRVs of 13 and 11, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Hardwick White reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 11, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
A 10-point LRV gap (21 vs 11) makes Artichoke the marginally brighter of the two.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
With LRVs of 12 and 11, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
At LRV 68 vs 11, Calamine is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 25 vs 11, Treron is decisively the brighter choice.
With LRVs of 12 and 11, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Saybrook Sage reflects far more light (LRV 45 vs 11), opening up a space where Graphic Charcoal encloses it.
At LRV 31 vs 11, Pale Green is decisively the brighter choice.
A 4-point LRV gap (11 vs 7) makes Graphic Charcoal the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 24 vs 11, Cement grey is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 57 vs 11, Guilford Green is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 72 vs 11, Just Walnut is decisively the brighter choice.