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.
More At Ease Soldier comparisons
See how At Ease Soldier stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
At LRV 69 vs 32, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
At Ease Soldier reflects far more light (LRV 32 vs 6), opening up a space where Iron Ore encloses it.
At LRV 52 vs 32, Purbeck Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 32 vs 30), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
At LRV 60 vs 32, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
At Ease Soldier reads slightly lighter (LRV 32 vs 27), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
A 12-point LRV gap (43 vs 32) makes French Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 32 vs 4, At Ease Soldier is decisively the brighter choice.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
At Ease Soldier reflects far more light (LRV 32 vs 13), opening up a space where Bancha encloses it.
Hardwick White reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 32, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
A 10-point LRV gap (32 vs 21) makes At Ease Soldier the marginally brighter of the two.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
At Ease Soldier reflects far more light (LRV 32 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
A 9-point LRV gap (41 vs 32) makes Dix Blue the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 68 vs 32, Calamine is decisively the brighter choice.
A 7-point LRV gap (32 vs 25) makes At Ease Soldier the marginally brighter of the two.
At Ease Soldier reflects far more light (LRV 32 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
Saybrook Sage reflects far more light (LRV 45 vs 32), opening up a space where At Ease Soldier encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 32 vs 31), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 32 vs 7, At Ease Soldier is decisively the brighter choice.
A 7-point LRV gap (32 vs 24) makes At Ease Soldier the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 57 vs 32, Guilford Green is decisively the brighter choice.