Mined Coal vs French Gray
Mined Coal is a Behr color while French Gray comes from Farrow & Ball. Hue-wise, Mined Coal belongs to the grey family and French Gray to the beige-greige family. At LRV 43 vs 15, French Gray will read as the brighter of the two — a 29-point gap that matters most in north-facing or low-light rooms. The tonal difference — Mined Coal's yellow character against French Gray's warm — becomes most visible against white trim or in morning light. At ΔE 28.3, these are genuinely distinct colors — a strong contrast if used together, or a meaningful choice between two different directions. Below you'll find 4 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Mined Coal vs French Gray in Real Spaces
4 real rooms side by side. Seeing Mined Coal and French Gray 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
Living rooms test a color across a full range of conditions — morning sun, afternoon shade, and evening lamp light all shift how both of these read. French Gray returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Bathroom
Bathrooms amplify color — the enclosed space and reflective surfaces make what reads subtle elsewhere feel more present here. The LRV gap is large enough that French Gray will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Mined Coal would.
House
At full exterior scale, the difference between these two colors becomes much easier to judge than from a small chip. The LRV gap is large enough that French Gray will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Mined Coal would.
Kitchen Cabinets
On cabinetry, undertone and temperature become more pronounced against countertops and hardware. The LRV gap is large enough that French Gray will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Mined Coal would.
Color Details
Mined Coal vs French Gray Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Mined Coal on one side and French 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 Mined Coal comparisons
See how Mined Coal stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
