Candid Blue vs Fountain
Candid Blue and Fountain come from the same Sherwin-Williams collection. Both sit in the blue family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. The 8-point LRV gap — 48 for Candid Blue vs 39 for Fountain — means Candid Blue will open up a space more effectively. Both share a cool character, which means they'll respond to light and surrounding materials in similar ways. ΔE 7.5 means they're clearly different, but not dramatically so — they'd pair well in the same room. Below you'll find 10 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Candid Blue vs Fountain in Real Spaces
10 real rooms side by side. Candid Blue and Fountain 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
A living room wall sees more varied light than almost any other surface in the house, which makes the choice between these two more nuanced than a chip suggests. Candid Blue reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Fountain.
Bedroom
Bedrooms are typically lit with warmer, lower light than the rest of the house — a condition that flatters warm tones and deepens cool ones. Candid Blue returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Kitchen
Kitchens often have the harshest, most revealing light in the house — under-cabinet LEDs and overhead fixtures that strip away subtlety. Candid Blue returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Dining Room
Dining rooms often rely on warm incandescent or candlelight, which flatters warm undertones and mutes cool ones. The LRV gap is large enough that Candid Blue will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Fountain would.
Bathroom
Small bathrooms intensify color. A shade that seems quiet in a larger room can feel immersive when you're surrounded by it on four walls. Candid Blue returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Home Office
Home office walls matter more than most — you're looking at them all day, and a color that reads fine at first can become tiring over time. Candid Blue returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Mudroom
In a hardworking space like a mudroom, the depth and warmth of a color reads differently than in a quieter room. The LRV gap is large enough that Candid Blue will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Fountain would.
Patio
Exterior colors look different in open light — both tend to read lighter outside than on an interior swatch, and shadows read more strongly. The LRV gap is large enough that Candid Blue will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Fountain would.
House
A full exterior is the most demanding test for a paint color — scale and outdoor light both amplify differences that seem small on a swatch. Candid Blue returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Front Door
On a front door, the color is both the first and last thing you see — a context where even a modest tonal difference reads clearly. Candid Blue reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Fountain.
Color Details
Candid Blue vs Fountain Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Candid Blue on one side and Fountain 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 Candid Blue comparisons
See how Candid Blue stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
At LRV 83 vs 48, White Dove is decisively the brighter choice.
Ammonite reflects far more light (LRV 69 vs 48), opening up a space where Candid Blue encloses it.
At LRV 48 vs 6, Candid Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
Purbeck Stone reads slightly lighter (LRV 52 vs 48), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Candid Blue reflects far more light (LRV 48 vs 30), opening up a space where Evergreen Fog encloses it.
A 4-point LRV gap (52 vs 48) makes Mizzle the marginally brighter of the two.
Agreeable Gray reflects far more light (LRV 60 vs 48), opening up a space where Candid Blue encloses it.
A 10-point LRV gap (58 vs 48) makes Accessible Beige the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 48 vs 27, Candid Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
Candid Blue reads slightly lighter (LRV 48 vs 43), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Candid Blue reflects far more light (LRV 48 vs 4), opening up a space where Naval encloses it.
A 7-point LRV gap (55 vs 48) makes Tranquil Dawn the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 48 vs 13, Candid Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
A 4-point LRV gap (48 vs 44) makes Candid Blue the marginally brighter of the two.
Pure White reflects far more light (LRV 84 vs 48), opening up a space where Candid Blue encloses it.
Candid Blue reflects far more light (LRV 48 vs 21), opening up a space where Artichoke encloses it.
At LRV 66 vs 48, Balboa Mist is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 74 vs 48, Shoji White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 83 vs 48, Snowbound is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 48 vs 12, Candid Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 68 vs 48, Skimming Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
Candid Blue reads slightly lighter (LRV 48 vs 41), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Calamine reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 48), opening up a space where Candid Blue encloses it.
Candid Blue reflects far more light (LRV 48 vs 25), opening up a space where Treron encloses it.
At LRV 48 vs 12, Candid Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 48 vs 45), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Candid Blue reflects far more light (LRV 48 vs 31), opening up a space where Pale Green encloses it.
Candid Blue reflects far more light (LRV 48 vs 7), opening up a space where Pine Needle encloses it.
Candid Blue reflects far more light (LRV 48 vs 24), opening up a space where Cement grey encloses it.
Guilford Green reads slightly lighter (LRV 57 vs 48), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.