Neutral Ground vs White Sesame
Both are Sherwin-Williams colors. Neutral Ground reads as beige, while White Sesame reads as beige-white — two distinct hue families, not close cousins. With LRVs of 70 and 71, they'll behave almost identically in terms of how much light they reflect back into a room. They share a warm quality — useful to know if you're layering them in the same space. With a ΔE of 1.1, the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side to reliably tell them apart. Below you'll find 3 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Neutral Ground vs White Sesame in Real Spaces
3 real rooms side by side. Neutral Ground and White Sesame 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
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. In photos like these you're seeing the difference at its most direct. In a finished room, the distinction is there but not dramatic.
Kitchen
Kitchen lighting tends to be bright and directional, which sharpens contrast and makes undertone differences more apparent. The two are close enough that the choice comes down to finer qualities — undertone, texture, what the color sits next to.
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. At this scale the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side, as shown here, to reliably tell them apart.
Color Details
Neutral Ground vs White Sesame Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Neutral Ground on one side and White Sesame 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 Neutral Ground comparisons
See how Neutral Ground stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 70), opening up a space where Neutral Ground encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 70 vs 69), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 6), opening up a space where Iron Ore encloses it.
At LRV 70 vs 52, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 70 vs 30, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 52), opening up a space where Mizzle encloses it.
A 10-point LRV gap (70 vs 60) makes Neutral Ground the marginally brighter of the two.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 58), opening up a space where Accessible Beige encloses it.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 27), opening up a space where Denim Drift encloses it.
At LRV 70 vs 43, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 70 vs 4, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 55), opening up a space where Tranquil Dawn encloses it.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 13), opening up a space where Bancha encloses it.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 44), opening up a space where Hardwick White encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 70, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 70 vs 21, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
Neutral Ground reads slightly lighter (LRV 70 vs 66), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Shoji White reads slightly lighter (LRV 74 vs 70), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 70), opening up a space where Neutral Ground encloses it.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 12), opening up a space where Pewter Green encloses it.
With LRVs of 70 and 68, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
At LRV 70 vs 41, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 70 vs 68), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 70 vs 25, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 12), opening up a space where Vintage Vogue encloses it.
Neutral Ground reflects far more light (LRV 70 vs 45), opening up a space where Saybrook Sage encloses it.
At LRV 70 vs 31, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 70 vs 7, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 70 vs 24, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 70 vs 57, Neutral Ground is decisively the brighter choice.