Gentle Gray vs RAL 820-1
Gentle Gray is a Benjamin Moore color while RAL 820-1 comes from RAL Effect. These are both blue-greys, so the question isn't which hue to choose — it's where within blue-grey to land. With LRVs of 57 and 57, they'll behave almost identically in terms of how much light they reflect back into a room. With a ΔE of 2.5, the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side to reliably tell them apart. Below you'll find 3 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Gentle Gray vs RAL 820-1 in Real Spaces
3 real rooms side by side. Gentle Gray and RAL 820-1 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
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. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Bedroom
Bedroom walls are often seen under warm artificial light, a context that shifts both colors from how they look on a chip. The two are close enough that the choice comes down to finer qualities — undertone, texture, what the color sits next to.
Bathroom
Bathrooms amplify color — the enclosed space and reflective surfaces make what reads subtle elsewhere feel more present here. The two are close enough that the choice comes down to finer qualities — undertone, texture, what the color sits next to.
Color Details
Gentle Gray vs RAL 820-1 Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Gentle Gray on one side and RAL 820-1 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 Gentle Gray comparisons
See how Gentle Gray stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
At LRV 83 vs 57, White Dove is decisively the brighter choice.
Ammonite reads slightly lighter (LRV 69 vs 57), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 57 vs 6, Gentle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Gentle Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 57 vs 52), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Gentle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 30), opening up a space where Evergreen Fog encloses it.
A 6-point LRV gap (57 vs 52) makes Gentle Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
Agreeable Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 60 vs 57), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 58 vs 57), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 57 vs 27, Gentle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Gentle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 43), opening up a space where French Gray encloses it.
Gentle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 4), opening up a space where Naval encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 57 vs 55), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 57 vs 13, Gentle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 57 vs 44, Gentle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Pure White reflects far more light (LRV 84 vs 57), opening up a space where Gentle Gray encloses it.
Gentle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 21), opening up a space where Artichoke encloses it.
A 8-point LRV gap (66 vs 57) makes Balboa Mist the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 74 vs 57, Shoji White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 83 vs 57, Snowbound is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 57 vs 12, Gentle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 11-point LRV gap (68 vs 57) makes Skimming Stone the marginally brighter of the two.
Gentle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 41), opening up a space where Dix Blue encloses it.
Calamine reads slightly lighter (LRV 68 vs 57), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Gentle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 25), opening up a space where Treron encloses it.
At LRV 57 vs 12, Gentle Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 12-point LRV gap (57 vs 45) makes Gentle Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
Gentle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 31), opening up a space where Pale Green encloses it.
Gentle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 7), opening up a space where Pine Needle encloses it.
Gentle Gray reflects far more light (LRV 57 vs 24), opening up a space where Cement grey encloses it.
With LRVs of 57 and 57, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.