Sparrow vs Balboa Mist
Sparrow (Behr) and Balboa Mist (Benjamin Moore) come from different manufacturers. Sparrow reads as grey, while Balboa Mist reads as beige-greige — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. The 22-point LRV gap — 66 for Balboa Mist vs 44 for Sparrow — means Balboa Mist will open up a space more effectively. Both share a red character, which means they'll respond to light and surrounding materials in similar ways. A ΔE of 14.6 puts these firmly in different territory — two distinct design choices rather than close alternatives. Below you'll find 2 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Sparrow vs Balboa Mist in Real Spaces
2 real rooms side by side. Seeing Sparrow and Balboa Mist 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
A living room wall sees more varied light than almost any other surface in the house, which makes the choice between these two more nuanced than a chip suggests. Balboa Mist reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Sparrow.
Kitchen
Kitchens often have the harshest, most revealing light in the house — under-cabinet LEDs and overhead fixtures that strip away subtlety. Balboa Mist returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Color Details
Sparrow vs Balboa Mist Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Sparrow on one side and Balboa Mist 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 Sparrow comparisons
See how Sparrow stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 44), opening up a space where Sparrow encloses it.
A 8-point LRV gap (52 vs 44) makes Purbeck Stone the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 44 vs 30, Sparrow is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 60 vs 44, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 44), opening up a space where Sparrow encloses it.
Sparrow reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 27), opening up a space where Denim Drift encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 44 vs 43), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Tranquil Dawn reads slightly lighter (LRV 55 vs 44), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
With LRVs of 44 and 44, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
At LRV 84 vs 44, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 44), opening up a space where Sparrow encloses it.
Sparrow reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 44), opening up a space where Sparrow encloses it.
Sparrow reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
With LRVs of 45 and 44, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
At LRV 44 vs 31, Sparrow is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 44 vs 7, Sparrow is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 44 vs 24, Sparrow is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 57 vs 44, Guilford Green is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 72 vs 44, Just Walnut is decisively the brighter choice.