Black Tar vs Cheating Heart
Black Tar and Cheating Heart come from the same Benjamin Moore collection. These are both greys, so the question isn't which hue to choose — it's where within grey to land. The 3-point LRV gap — 9 for Cheating Heart vs 6 for Black Tar — means Cheating Heart will open up a space more effectively. Both share a blue character, which means they'll respond to light and surrounding materials in similar ways. ΔE 8.7 means they're clearly different, but not dramatically so — they'd pair well in the same room. Below you'll find 3 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Black Tar vs Cheating Heart in Real Spaces
3 real rooms side by side. Black Tar and Cheating Heart 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
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. Cheating Heart reads slightly lighter here — a subtle but real difference in how open the space feels.
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. Cheating Heart has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
Kitchen Cabinets
Cabinet color is always seen in context — against countertops, backsplash, and hardware — which amplifies undertone differences that might disappear on a plain wall. Cheating Heart has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
Color Details
Black Tar vs Cheating Heart Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Black Tar on one side and Cheating Heart 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 Black Tar comparisons
See how Black Tar stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
