Searching Blue vs Soulful Blue
Both from Sherwin-Williams's palette. Hue-wise, Searching Blue belongs to the blue family and Soulful Blue to the blue-grey family. They have nearly identical light reflectance values (21 vs 20), so they'll read as similarly Medium in most lighting conditions. Both lean cool, so they'll behave similarly in mixed or changing light conditions. The ΔE 5.2 gap is real but not dramatic — close enough to use together, distinct enough to matter as a choice. Below you'll find 1 real-room photo comparison where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Searching Blue vs Soulful Blue in Real Spaces
1 real room side by side. Searching Blue and Soulful Blue 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.
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. The distinction reads clearly at room scale, making the choice between them concrete.
Color Details
Searching Blue vs Soulful Blue Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Searching Blue on one side and Soulful Blue 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 Searching Blue comparisons
See how Searching Blue stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
White Dove reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
At LRV 69 vs 21, Ammonite is decisively the brighter choice.
Searching Blue reflects far more light (LRV 21 vs 6), opening up a space where Iron Ore encloses it.
At LRV 52 vs 21, Purbeck Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
A 10-point LRV gap (30 vs 21) makes Evergreen Fog the marginally brighter of the two.
Mizzle reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
At LRV 60 vs 21, Agreeable Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
Accessible Beige reflects far more light (LRV 58 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
Denim Drift reads slightly lighter (LRV 27 vs 21), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 43 vs 21, French Gray is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 21 vs 4, Searching Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
Tranquil Dawn reflects far more light (LRV 55 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
Searching Blue reads slightly lighter (LRV 21 vs 13), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Hardwick White reflects far more light (LRV 44 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
At LRV 84 vs 21, Pure White is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 21 vs 21), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Balboa Mist reflects far more light (LRV 66 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
Shoji White reflects far more light (LRV 74 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
Snowbound reflects far more light (LRV 83 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
Searching Blue reads slightly lighter (LRV 21 vs 12), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Skimming Stone reflects far more light (LRV 68 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
At LRV 41 vs 21, Dix Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 68 vs 21, Calamine is decisively the brighter choice.
A 4-point LRV gap (25 vs 21) makes Treron the marginally brighter of the two.
Searching Blue reads slightly lighter (LRV 21 vs 12), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
Saybrook Sage reflects far more light (LRV 45 vs 21), opening up a space where Searching Blue encloses it.
A 11-point LRV gap (31 vs 21) makes Pale Green the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 21 vs 7, Searching Blue is decisively the brighter choice.
A 4-point LRV gap (24 vs 21) makes Cement grey the marginally brighter of the two.
At LRV 57 vs 21, Guilford Green is decisively the brighter choice.