Cityscape vs Unusual Gray
Both from Sherwin-Williams's palette. Both sit in the grey family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. Unusual Gray (LRV 38) reflects noticeably more light than Cityscape (LRV 22), a difference of 16 points that becomes especially apparent in rooms with limited natural light. Both lean neutral, so they'll behave similarly in mixed or changing light conditions. With a ΔE of 14.4, 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 4 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Cityscape vs Unusual Gray in Real Spaces
4 real rooms side by side. Seeing Cityscape and Unusual Gray 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 Unusual Gray will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Cityscape 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. Unusual Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Cityscape.
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. Unusual Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Cityscape.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. Unusual Gray reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Cityscape.
Color Details
Cityscape vs Unusual Gray Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Cityscape on one side and Unusual Gray 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.