Duxbury Gray vs Retreat
Duxbury Gray (Benjamin Moore) and Retreat (Sherwin-Williams) come from different manufacturers. Both sit in the grey family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. The 3-point LRV gap — 24 for Duxbury Gray vs 21 for Retreat — means Duxbury Gray will open up a space more effectively. Where Duxbury Gray leans green, Retreat reads neutral — a distinction that shifts noticeably depending on the light source and surrounding finishes. A ΔE of 3.0 puts them in subtle territory — distinguishable in direct comparison, less so from across a room. Below you'll find 8 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Duxbury Gray vs Retreat in Real Spaces
8 real rooms side by side. Duxbury Gray and Retreat 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. At this scale the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side, as shown here, to reliably tell them apart.
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. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Kitchen
Kitchens often have the harshest, most revealing light in the house — under-cabinet LEDs and overhead fixtures that strip away subtlety. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Dining Room
Dining rooms often rely on warm incandescent or candlelight, which flatters warm undertones and mutes cool ones. The two are close enough that the choice comes down to finer qualities — undertone, texture, what the color sits next to.
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. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
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. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
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. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
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. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Color Details
Duxbury Gray vs Retreat Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Duxbury Gray on one side and Retreat 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 Duxbury Gray comparisons
See how Duxbury Gray stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
At LRV 69 vs 24, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
Duxbury Gray reflects far more light (LRV 24 vs 6), opening up a space where Iron Ore encloses it.
At LRV 52 vs 24, Purbeck Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
A 7-point LRV gap (30 vs 24) makes Evergreen Fog the marginally brighter of the two.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
At LRV 60 vs 24, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
Denim Drift reads slightly lighter (LRV 27 vs 24), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 43 vs 24, French Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 24 vs 4, Duxbury Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
Duxbury Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 24 vs 13), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Hardwick White reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 24, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 24 vs 21), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
At LRV 51 vs 24, Pigeon is decisively the brighter choice.
Duxbury Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 24 vs 12), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Duxbury Gray reflects far more light (LRV 24 vs 8), opening up a space where Duck Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
At LRV 41 vs 24, Dix Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
Duxbury Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 24 vs 12), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Saybrook Sage reflects far more light (LRV 45 vs 24), opening up a space where Duxbury Gray encloses it.
A 8-point LRV gap (31 vs 24) makes Pale Green the marginally brighter of the two.