At Ease Soldier vs Charcoal Blue
Both from Sherwin-Williams's palette. Hue-wise, At Ease Soldier belongs to the greige-grey family and Charcoal Blue to the blue-grey family. At Ease Soldier (LRV 32) reflects noticeably more light than Charcoal Blue (LRV 6), a difference of 26 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. At Ease Soldier runs warm while Charcoal Blue is decidedly cool, which means they'll respond very differently to warm vs cool light sources. With a ΔE of 39.6, 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 5 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
At Ease Soldier vs Charcoal Blue in Real Spaces
5 real rooms side by side. Seeing At Ease Soldier and Charcoal 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
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 At Ease Soldier will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Charcoal Blue 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. At Ease Soldier reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Charcoal Blue.
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. At Ease Soldier reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Charcoal 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 At Ease Soldier will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Charcoal Blue would.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. At Ease Soldier reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Charcoal Blue.
Color Details
At Ease Soldier vs Charcoal Blue Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see At Ease Soldier on one side and Charcoal 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.