Puritan Gray vs Pure White
Where Puritan Gray belongs to Benjamin Moore's range, Pure White is a Sherwin-Williams color. Puritan Gray reads as grey, while Pure White reads as beige-greige — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. Pure White (LRV 84) reflects noticeably more light than Puritan Gray (LRV 34), a difference of 50 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. Puritan Gray runs green while Pure White is decidedly warm, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 28.8, the contrast is hard to miss. These aren't variations on a theme — they're two different answers to the same question. Below you'll find 4 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Puritan Gray vs Pure White in Real Spaces
4 real rooms side by side. Seeing Puritan Gray and Pure White 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
In a living room, color works across both daylight and evening light — the same wall can read very differently at noon and at 8pm. The LRV gap is large enough that Pure White will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Puritan Gray would.
Bathroom
Bathrooms are one of the few spaces where you're genuinely enclosed by the paint color, which makes the choice between these two more consequential. Pure White reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Puritan Gray.
House
Seen across an entire facade, subtle tonal differences become pronounced. What reads as nearly the same on a chip often reads as clearly different at scale. Pure White reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Puritan Gray.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. Pure White reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Puritan Gray.
Color Details
Puritan Gray vs Pure White Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Puritan Gray on one side and Pure White 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 Puritan Gray comparisons
See how Puritan Gray stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
Ammonite reflects far more light (LRV 69 vs 34), opening up a space where Puritan Gray encloses it.
At LRV 83 vs 34, White Dove is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 34 vs 6, Puritan Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Purbeck Stone reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 34), opening up a space where Puritan Gray encloses it.
Puritan Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 34 vs 30), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 52 vs 34, Mizzle is decisively the brighter choice.
Agreeable Gray reflects far more light (LRV 60 vs 34), opening up a space where Puritan Gray encloses it.
At LRV 58 vs 34, Accessible Beige is decisively the brighter choice.
A 7-point LRV gap (34 vs 27) makes Puritan Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
French Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 43 vs 34), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Puritan Gray reflects far more light (LRV 34 vs 4), opening up a space where Naval encloses it.
At LRV 55 vs 34, Tranquil Dawn is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 34 vs 13, Puritan Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 9-point LRV gap (44 vs 34) makes Hardwick White the marginally brighter of the two.
Puritan Gray reflects far more light (LRV 34 vs 21), opening up a space where Artichoke encloses it.
At LRV 66 vs 34, Balboa Mist is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 74 vs 34, Shoji White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 83 vs 34, Snowbound is decisively the brighter choice.
Pigeon reflects far more light (LRV 51 vs 34), opening up a space where Puritan Gray encloses it.
At LRV 34 vs 12, Puritan Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 34 vs 8, Puritan Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 68 vs 34, Skimming Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
Dix Blue reads slightly lighter (LRV 41 vs 34), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 34 vs 12, Puritan Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
A 11-point LRV gap (45 vs 34) makes Saybrook Sage the marginally brighter of the two.
Puritan Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 34 vs 31), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Puritan Gray reflects far more light (LRV 34 vs 7), opening up a space where Pine Needle encloses it.