Butternut vs Independent Gold
Both are Sherwin-Williams colors. Both sit in the beige family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. At LRV 50 vs 37, Independent Gold will read as the brighter of the two — a 13-point gap that matters most in north-facing or low-light rooms. They share a warm quality — useful to know if you're layering them in the same space. At ΔE 16.2, these are genuinely distinct colors — a strong contrast if used together, or a meaningful choice between two different directions. Below you'll find 10 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Butternut vs Independent Gold in Real Spaces
10 real rooms side by side. Seeing Butternut and Independent Gold 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
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. Independent Gold returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Bedroom
Bedroom walls are often seen under warm artificial light, a context that shifts both colors from how they look on a chip. The LRV gap is large enough that Independent Gold will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Butternut would.
Kitchen
Kitchen lighting tends to be bright and directional, which sharpens contrast and makes undertone differences more apparent. The LRV gap is large enough that Independent Gold will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Butternut would.
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. Independent Gold reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Butternut.
Bathroom
Bathrooms amplify color — the enclosed space and reflective surfaces make what reads subtle elsewhere feel more present here. The LRV gap is large enough that Independent Gold will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Butternut would.
Home Office
In a home office, wall color sits in your peripheral vision for hours at a time, so temperature and undertone matter more than you might expect. The LRV gap is large enough that Independent Gold will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Butternut would.
Mudroom
A mudroom color needs to hold up under the most casual scrutiny: a glance as you're coming and going, often in mixed or artificial light. Independent Gold reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Butternut.
Patio
Patio colors are seen under changing outdoor light throughout the day — morning, midday, and golden hour each reveal different qualities. Independent Gold reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Butternut.
House
At full exterior scale, the difference between these two colors becomes much easier to judge than from a small chip. The LRV gap is large enough that Independent Gold will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Butternut would.
Front Door
Front doors are seen in isolation against the rest of the facade, which makes them a high-stakes surface where even subtle differences matter. Independent Gold returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Color Details
Butternut vs Independent Gold Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Butternut on one side and Independent Gold 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 Butternut comparisons
See how Butternut stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 37), opening up a space where Butternut encloses it.
At LRV 52 vs 37, Purbeck Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
A 7-point LRV gap (37 vs 30) makes Butternut the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 60 vs 37, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 37), opening up a space where Butternut encloses it.
Butternut reads slightly lighter (LRV 37 vs 27), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
A 6-point LRV gap (43 vs 37) makes French Gray the marginally brighter of the two.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 37), opening up a space where Butternut encloses it.
Hardwick White reads slightly lighter (LRV 44 vs 37), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 84 vs 37, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 37), opening up a space where Butternut encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 37), opening up a space where Butternut encloses it.
Butternut reflects far more light (LRV 37 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
Butternut reflects far more light (LRV 37 vs 8), opening up a space where Duck Green encloses it.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 37), opening up a space where Butternut encloses it.
Butternut reflects far more light (LRV 37 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
Saybrook Sage reads slightly lighter (LRV 45 vs 37), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
A 6-point LRV gap (37 vs 31) makes Butternut the marginally brighter of the two.