Northern Cliffs vs RAL 840-3
Northern Cliffs (Benjamin Moore) and RAL 840-3 (RAL Effect) come from different manufacturers. Both sit in the greige-grey family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. Their light reflectance values are nearly the same — 46 vs 46 — so neither will read significantly brighter or darker than the other. A ΔE of 1.2 puts them in subtle territory — distinguishable in direct comparison, less so from across a room. Below you'll find 2 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Northern Cliffs vs RAL 840-3 in Real Spaces
2 real rooms side by side. Northern Cliffs and RAL 840-3 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.
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.
Color Details
Northern Cliffs vs RAL 840-3 Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Northern Cliffs on one side and RAL 840-3 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 Northern Cliffs comparisons
See how Northern Cliffs stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
At LRV 69 vs 46, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 46), opening up a space where Northern Cliffs encloses it.
Northern Cliffs reflects far more light (LRV 46 vs 6), opening up a space where Iron Ore encloses it.
A 6-point LRV gap (52 vs 46) makes Purbeck Stone the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 46 vs 30, Northern Cliffs is decisively the brighter choice.
Mizzle reads slightly lighter (LRV 52 vs 46), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 60 vs 46, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 46), opening up a space where Northern Cliffs encloses it.
Northern Cliffs reflects far more light (LRV 46 vs 27), opening up a space where Denim Drift encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 46 vs 43), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 46 vs 4, Northern Cliffs is decisively the brighter choice.
Tranquil Dawn reads slightly lighter (LRV 55 vs 46), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Northern Cliffs reflects far more light (LRV 46 vs 13), opening up a space where Bancha encloses it.
With LRVs of 46 and 44, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
At LRV 84 vs 46, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 46 vs 21, Northern Cliffs is decisively the brighter choice.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 46), opening up a space where Northern Cliffs encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 46), opening up a space where Northern Cliffs encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 46), opening up a space where Northern Cliffs encloses it.
A 5-point LRV gap (51 vs 46) makes Pigeon the marginally brighter of the two.
Northern Cliffs reflects far more light (LRV 46 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
Northern Cliffs reflects far more light (LRV 46 vs 8), opening up a space where Duck Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 46), opening up a space where Northern Cliffs encloses it.
A 5-point LRV gap (46 vs 41) makes Northern Cliffs the marginally brighter of the two.
Northern Cliffs reflects far more light (LRV 46 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
With LRVs of 46 and 45, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
At LRV 46 vs 31, Northern Cliffs is decisively the brighter choice.