Toasty Gray vs Balboa Mist
Toasty Gray (Behr) and Balboa Mist (Benjamin Moore) come from different manufacturers. Toasty Gray reads as grey, while Balboa Mist reads as beige-greige — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. The 5-point LRV gap — 66 for Balboa Mist vs 61 for Toasty Gray — 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 51.8 puts these firmly in different territory — two distinct design choices rather than close alternatives. Below you'll find 5 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Toasty Gray vs Balboa Mist in Real Spaces
5 real rooms side by side. Seeing Toasty Gray 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 reads slightly lighter here — a subtle but real difference in how open the space feels.
Bedroom
Bedrooms are typically lit with warmer, lower light than the rest of the house — a condition that flatters warm tones and deepens cool ones. Balboa Mist has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
Dining Room
Dining rooms often rely on warm incandescent or candlelight, which flatters warm undertones and mutes cool ones. The brightness difference is modest but present — Balboa Mist gives the walls a little more lift.
Bathroom
Small bathrooms intensify color. A shade that seems quiet in a larger room can feel immersive when you're surrounded by it on four walls. Balboa Mist has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
House
A full exterior is the most demanding test for a paint color — scale and outdoor light both amplify differences that seem small on a swatch. Balboa Mist has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
Color Details
Toasty Gray vs Balboa Mist Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Toasty Gray 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 Toasty Gray comparisons
See how Toasty Gray stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
A 8-point LRV gap (69 vs 61) makes Ammonite the marginally brighter of the two.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 61), opening up a space where Toasty Gray encloses it.
Toasty Gray reflects far more light (LRV 61 vs 6), opening up a space where Iron Ore encloses it.
A 9-point LRV gap (61 vs 52) makes Toasty Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 61 vs 30, Toasty Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Toasty Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 61 vs 52), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 61 vs 60), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Toasty Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 61 vs 58), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Toasty Gray reflects far more light (LRV 61 vs 27), opening up a space where Denim Drift encloses it.
At LRV 61 vs 43, Toasty Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Toasty Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 61 vs 55), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Toasty Gray reflects far more light (LRV 61 vs 13), opening up a space where Bancha encloses it.
Toasty Gray reflects far more light (LRV 61 vs 44), opening up a space where Hardwick White encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 61, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 61 vs 21, Toasty Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 61), opening up a space where Toasty Gray encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 61), opening up a space where Toasty Gray encloses it.
A 10-point LRV gap (61 vs 51) makes Toasty Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
Toasty Gray reflects far more light (LRV 61 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
Toasty Gray reflects far more light (LRV 61 vs 8), opening up a space where Duck Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reads slightly lighter (LRV 68 vs 61), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 61 vs 41, Toasty Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Toasty Gray reflects far more light (LRV 61 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
Toasty Gray reflects far more light (LRV 61 vs 45), opening up a space where Saybrook Sage encloses it.
At LRV 61 vs 31, Toasty Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 61 vs 7, Toasty Gray is decisively the brighter choice.