Smokey Taupe vs Hicks' Blue
Smokey Taupe is a Benjamin Moore color while Hicks' Blue comes from Little Greene. Hue-wise, Smokey Taupe belongs to the beige-greige family and Hicks' Blue to the blue family. Smokey Taupe has an LRV of 55. The tonal difference — Smokey Taupe's red character against Hicks' Blue's blue — becomes most visible against white trim or in morning light. At ΔE 47.8, these are genuinely distinct colors — a strong contrast if used together, or a meaningful choice between two different directions. Below you'll find 2 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Smokey Taupe vs Hicks' Blue in Real Spaces
2 real rooms side by side. Seeing Smokey Taupe and Hicks' Blue 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
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. At this scale, the choice between them becomes clear in a way that a swatch alone can't communicate.
Kitchen Cabinets
On cabinetry, undertone and temperature become more pronounced against countertops and hardware. Side by side like this, the difference is easy to read — which is exactly why seeing them in a real space is more useful than comparing chips.
Color Details
Smokey Taupe vs Hicks' Blue Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Smokey Taupe on one side and Hicks' Blue 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 Smokey Taupe comparisons
See how Smokey Taupe stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
Ammonite reflects far more light (LRV 69 vs 55), opening up a space where Smokey Taupe encloses it.
At LRV 83 vs 55, White Dove is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 55 vs 6, Smokey Taupe is decisively the brighter choice.
With LRVs of 55 and 52, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
Smokey Taupe reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 30), opening up a space where Evergreen Fog encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 55 vs 52), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Agreeable Gray reads slightly lighter (LRV 60 vs 55), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
A 3-point LRV gap (58 vs 55) makes Accessible Beige the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 55 vs 27, Smokey Taupe is decisively the brighter choice.
Smokey Taupe reads slightly lighter (LRV 55 vs 43), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Smokey Taupe reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 4), opening up a space where Naval encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 55 vs 55), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 55 vs 13, Smokey Taupe is decisively the brighter choice.
A 11-point LRV gap (55 vs 44) makes Smokey Taupe the marginally brighter of the two.
Pure White reflects far more light (LRV 84 vs 55), opening up a space where Smokey Taupe encloses it.
Smokey Taupe reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 21), opening up a space where Artichoke encloses it.
A 11-point LRV gap (66 vs 55) makes Balboa Mist the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 74 vs 55, Shoji White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 83 vs 55, Snowbound is decisively the brighter choice.
Smokey Taupe reads slightly lighter (LRV 55 vs 51), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 55 vs 12, Smokey Taupe is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 55 vs 8, Smokey Taupe is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 68 vs 55, Skimming Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
Smokey Taupe reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 41), opening up a space where Dix Blue encloses it.
At LRV 55 vs 12, Smokey Taupe is decisively the brighter choice.
A 9-point LRV gap (55 vs 45) makes Smokey Taupe the marginally brighter of the two.
Smokey Taupe reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 31), opening up a space where Pale Green encloses it.
Smokey Taupe reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 7), opening up a space where Pine Needle encloses it.