Char Brown vs Hicks' Blue
Char Brown is a Benjamin Moore color while Hicks' Blue comes from Little Greene. Char Brown reads as beige-greige, while Hicks' Blue reads as blue — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. Char Brown has an LRV of 9. The tonal difference — Char Brown's red character against Hicks' Blue's blue — becomes most visible against white trim or in morning light. At ΔE 23.2, these are genuinely distinct colors — a strong contrast if used together, or a meaningful choice between two different directions. Below you'll find 2 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Char Brown vs Hicks' Blue in Real Spaces
2 real rooms side by side. Seeing Char Brown and Hicks' 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
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. At this scale, the choice between them becomes clear in a way that a swatch alone can't communicate.
Kitchen Cabinets
On cabinetry, undertone and temperature become more pronounced against countertops and hardware. Side by side like this, the difference is easy to read — which is exactly why seeing them in a real space is more useful than comparing chips.
Color Details
Char Brown vs Hicks' Blue Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Char Brown on one side and Hicks' 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 Char Brown comparisons
See how Char Brown stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
At LRV 69 vs 9, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
Char Brown reads slightly lighter (LRV 9 vs 6), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 52 vs 9, Purbeck Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 30 vs 9, Evergreen Fog is decisively the brighter choice.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
At LRV 60 vs 9, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
Denim Drift reflects far more light (LRV 27 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
At LRV 43 vs 9, French Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 5-point LRV gap (9 vs 4) makes Char Brown the marginally brighter of the two.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
Bancha reads slightly lighter (LRV 13 vs 9), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Hardwick White reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 9, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 21 vs 9, Artichoke is decisively the brighter choice.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
At LRV 51 vs 9, Pigeon is decisively the brighter choice.
With LRVs of 12 and 9, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
With LRVs of 9 and 8, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
At LRV 41 vs 9, Dix Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
With LRVs of 12 and 9, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Saybrook Sage reflects far more light (LRV 45 vs 9), opening up a space where Char Brown encloses it.
At LRV 31 vs 9, Pale Green is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 9 vs 7), so neither reads brighter in a room.