Van Courtland Blue vs Agreeable Gray
Where Van Courtland Blue belongs to Benjamin Moore's range, Agreeable Gray is a Sherwin-Williams color. Hue-wise, Van Courtland Blue belongs to the blue-grey family and Agreeable Gray to the greige-grey family. Agreeable Gray (LRV 60) reflects noticeably more light than Van Courtland Blue (LRV 31), a difference of 29 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. Van Courtland Blue runs blue while Agreeable Gray is decidedly warm, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 23.7, 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 7 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Van Courtland Blue vs Agreeable Gray in Real Spaces
7 real rooms side by side. Seeing Van Courtland Blue and Agreeable Gray 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 Agreeable Gray will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Van Courtland Blue would.
Bedroom
The context that matters most in a bedroom is how a color reads under a bedside lamp at night, not under noon daylight. Agreeable Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Van Courtland Blue.
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. Agreeable Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Van Courtland Blue.
Mudroom
Mudrooms are seen in passing, often under whatever light comes through the door — a context that favors colors with some depth. Agreeable Gray returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
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. Agreeable Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Van Courtland Blue.
Front Door
A front door is a focal point — small color differences read clearly at this concentrated scale. The LRV gap is large enough that Agreeable Gray will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Van Courtland Blue would.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. Agreeable Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Van Courtland Blue.
Color Details
Van Courtland Blue vs Agreeable Gray Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Van Courtland Blue on one side and Agreeable Gray 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 Van Courtland Blue comparisons
See how Van Courtland Blue stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
