On The Rocks vs Passive
On The Rocks and Passive come from the same Sherwin-Williams collection. Both sit in the grey family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. Their light reflectance values are nearly the same — 62 vs 60 — so neither will read significantly brighter or darker than the other. Both share a neutral character, which means they'll respond to light and surrounding materials in similar ways. A ΔE of 2.1 puts them in subtle territory — distinguishable in direct comparison, less so from across a room. Below you'll find 1 real-room photo comparison where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
On The Rocks vs Passive in Real Spaces
1 real room side by side. On The Rocks and Passive 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. At this scale the difference is subtle — you'd need them side by side, as shown here, to reliably tell them apart.
Color Details
On The Rocks vs Passive Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see On The Rocks on one side and Passive 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 On The Rocks comparisons
See how On The Rocks stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
Ammonite reads slightly lighter (LRV 69 vs 62), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 83 vs 62, White Dove is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 62 vs 6, On The Rocks is decisively the brighter choice.
On The Rocks reads slightly lighter (LRV 62 vs 52), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
On The Rocks reflects far more light (LRV 62 vs 30), opening up a space where Evergreen Fog encloses it.
A 10-point LRV gap (62 vs 52) makes On The Rocks the marginally brighter of the two.
With LRVs of 62 and 60, the two reflect almost the same amount of light.
A 4-point LRV gap (62 vs 58) makes On The Rocks the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 62 vs 27, On The Rocks is decisively the brighter choice.
On The Rocks reflects far more light (LRV 62 vs 43), opening up a space where French Gray encloses it.
On The Rocks reflects far more light (LRV 62 vs 4), opening up a space where Naval encloses it.
A 7-point LRV gap (62 vs 55) makes On The Rocks the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 62 vs 13, On The Rocks is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 62 vs 44, On The Rocks is decisively the brighter choice.
Pure White reflects far more light (LRV 84 vs 62), opening up a space where On The Rocks encloses it.
On The Rocks reflects far more light (LRV 62 vs 21), opening up a space where Artichoke encloses it.
A 4-point LRV gap (66 vs 62) makes Balboa Mist the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 74 vs 62, Shoji White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 83 vs 62, Snowbound is decisively the brighter choice.
On The Rocks reads slightly lighter (LRV 62 vs 51), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 62 vs 12, On The Rocks is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 62 vs 8, On The Rocks is decisively the brighter choice.
A 7-point LRV gap (68 vs 62) makes Skimming Stone the marginally brighter of the two.
On The Rocks reflects far more light (LRV 62 vs 41), opening up a space where Dix Blue encloses it.
At LRV 62 vs 12, On The Rocks is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 62 vs 45, On The Rocks is decisively the brighter choice.
On The Rocks reflects far more light (LRV 62 vs 31), opening up a space where Pale Green encloses it.