Malt vs Ashen
Malt is a Cloverdale Paint color while Ashen comes from PPG. These are both beige-greiges, so the question isn't which hue to choose — it's where within beige-greige to land. With LRVs of 52 and 52, they'll behave almost identically in terms of how much light they reflect back into a room. With a ΔE of 1.1, the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side to reliably tell them apart. Below you'll find 5 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Malt vs Ashen in Real Spaces
5 real rooms side by side. Malt and Ashen 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.
Kitchen
Kitchen lighting tends to be bright and directional, which sharpens contrast and makes undertone differences more apparent. The two are close enough that the choice comes down to finer qualities — undertone, texture, what the color sits next to.
Dining Room
Dining room light is typically the warmest in the house, which shifts both colors toward the red end of the spectrum compared to daylight. At this scale the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side, as shown here, to reliably tell them apart.
Color Details
Malt vs Ashen Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Malt on one side and Ashen 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 Malt comparisons
See how Malt stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 52), opening up a space where Malt encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 52 vs 52), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 52 vs 30, Malt is decisively the brighter choice.
A 8-point LRV gap (60 vs 52) makes Agreeable Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
Accessible Beige reads slightly lighter (LRV 58 vs 52), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Malt reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 27), opening up a space where Denim Drift encloses it.
A 9-point LRV gap (52 vs 43) makes Malt the marginally brighter of the two.
Tranquil Dawn reads slightly lighter (LRV 55 vs 52), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Malt reads slightly lighter (LRV 52 vs 44), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 84 vs 52, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 52), opening up a space where Malt encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 52), opening up a space where Malt encloses it.
Malt reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
Malt reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 8), opening up a space where Duck Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 52), opening up a space where Malt encloses it.
Malt reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
Malt reads slightly lighter (LRV 52 vs 45), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 52 vs 31, Malt is decisively the brighter choice.