Ripe Olive vs Sea Salt
Both from Sherwin-Williams's palette. These are both green-greys, so the question isn't which hue to choose — it's where within green-grey to land. Sea Salt (LRV 63) reflects noticeably more light than Ripe Olive (LRV 6), a difference of 57 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 53.8, 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 8 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Ripe Olive vs Sea Salt in Real Spaces
8 real rooms side by side. Seeing Ripe Olive and Sea Salt 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 Sea Salt will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Ripe Olive would.
Bedroom
The context that matters most in a bedroom is how a color reads under a bedside lamp at night, not under noon daylight. Sea Salt reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Ripe Olive.
Kitchen
In a kitchen, colors are seen under bright task lighting that amplifies undertones — what reads neutral elsewhere can show its hand here. Sea Salt reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Ripe Olive.
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. Sea Salt reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Ripe Olive.
Home Office
The test for a home office color isn't how it looks in a quick glance — it's whether it still feels right after a full day of work. Sea Salt reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Ripe Olive.
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. Sea Salt reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Ripe Olive.
Front Door
A front door is a focal point — small color differences read clearly at this concentrated scale. The LRV gap is large enough that Sea Salt will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Ripe Olive would.
Kitchen Cabinets
Kitchen cabinets are constantly compared against adjacent materials, which means subtle differences between these two become much more visible. Sea Salt reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Ripe Olive.
Color Details
Ripe Olive vs Sea Salt Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Ripe Olive on one side and Sea Salt 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 Ripe Olive comparisons
See how Ripe Olive stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
