Charcoal Slate vs Duck Green
Charcoal Slate (Benjamin Moore) and Duck Green (Farrow & Ball) come from different manufacturers. Charcoal Slate reads as grey, while Duck Green reads as green-grey — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. The 6-point LRV gap — 15 for Charcoal Slate vs 8 for Duck Green — means Charcoal Slate will open up a space more effectively. Where Charcoal Slate leans blue, Duck Green reads neutral — a distinction that shifts noticeably depending on the light source and surrounding finishes. A ΔE of 18.2 puts these firmly in different territory — two distinct design choices rather than close alternatives. Below you'll find 8 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Charcoal Slate vs Duck Green in Real Spaces
8 real rooms side by side. Seeing Charcoal Slate and Duck Green 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. Charcoal Slate 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. Charcoal Slate has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
Kitchen
Kitchens often have the harshest, most revealing light in the house — under-cabinet LEDs and overhead fixtures that strip away subtlety. Charcoal Slate 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 — Charcoal Slate 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. Charcoal Slate has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
Home Office
Home office walls matter more than most — you're looking at them all day, and a color that reads fine at first can become tiring over time. Charcoal Slate has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
Front Door
On a front door, the color is both the first and last thing you see — a context where even a modest tonal difference reads clearly. Charcoal Slate reads slightly lighter here — a subtle but real difference in how open the space feels.
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. Charcoal Slate has the edge in reflectance, which shows as a quiet sense of added space rather than an obvious contrast.
Color Details
Charcoal Slate vs Duck Green Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Charcoal Slate on one side and Duck Green 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 Charcoal Slate comparisons
See how Charcoal Slate stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
At LRV 69 vs 15, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
Charcoal Slate reads slightly lighter (LRV 15 vs 6), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 52 vs 15, Purbeck Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 30 vs 15, Evergreen Fog is decisively the brighter choice.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
At LRV 60 vs 15, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
Denim Drift reflects far more light (LRV 27 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
At LRV 43 vs 15, French Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 10-point LRV gap (15 vs 4) makes Charcoal Slate the marginally brighter of the two.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
With LRVs of 15 and 13, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Hardwick White reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 15, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
A 7-point LRV gap (21 vs 15) makes Artichoke the marginally brighter of the two.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
At LRV 51 vs 15, Pigeon is decisively the brighter choice.
With LRVs of 15 and 12, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
At LRV 41 vs 15, Dix Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
With LRVs of 15 and 12, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Saybrook Sage reflects far more light (LRV 45 vs 15), opening up a space where Charcoal Slate encloses it.
At LRV 31 vs 15, Pale Green is decisively the brighter choice.
A 8-point LRV gap (15 vs 7) makes Charcoal Slate the marginally brighter of the two.