French Gray vs Middle Buff
Where French Gray belongs to Farrow & Ball's range, Middle Buff is a Little Greene color. Hue-wise, French Gray belongs to the beige-greige family and Middle Buff to the beige family. French Gray (LRV 43) reflects noticeably more light than Middle Buff (LRV 22), a difference of 22 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. French Gray runs warm while Middle Buff is decidedly red, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 44.4, 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 2 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
French Gray vs Middle Buff in Real Spaces
2 real rooms side by side. Seeing French Gray and Middle Buff 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 French Gray will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Middle Buff 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. French Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Middle Buff.
Color Details
French Gray vs Middle Buff Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see French Gray on one side and Middle Buff 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 French Gray comparisons
See how French Gray stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
