Cheating Heart vs Salamander
Cheating Heart and Salamander come from the same Benjamin Moore collection. Cheating Heart reads as grey, while Salamander reads as blue-grey — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. The 3-point LRV gap — 9 for Cheating Heart vs 6 for Salamander — 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 9.6 means they're clearly different, but not dramatically so — they'd pair well in the same room. Below you'll find 6 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Cheating Heart vs Salamander in Real Spaces
6 real rooms side by side. Cheating Heart and Salamander 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.
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 — Cheating Heart 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. Cheating Heart 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. Cheating Heart 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. 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
Cheating Heart vs Salamander Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Cheating Heart on one side and Salamander 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 Cheating Heart comparisons
See how Cheating Heart stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
