Match Merlot
Sherwin-Williams Merlot is a deep, low-reflectance shade, warm in character with an LRV of 4. The matches below are ranked by ΔE, a perceptual color-difference score.
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Closest matches across every brand
One match per brand, ranked by ΔE — a perceptual color difference score calculated from Lab color space values. Lower is closer. Click any card to compare side by side in simulated rooms.
With LRVs of 5 and 4, the two reflect almost the same amount of light. At ΔE 2.0 you'd need them side by side to tell them apart.
With LRVs of 6 and 4, the two reflect almost the same amount of light. At ΔE 4.8 they're clearly different, yet close enough to share a room.
A 5-point LRV gap (9 vs 4) makes Gooseberry the marginally brighter of the two. The ΔE 6.4 gap is real but not dramatic — distinct as a choice, harmonious together.
A 4-point LRV gap (8 vs 4) makes Cherry Chocolate the marginally brighter of the two. The ΔE 7.1 gap is real but not dramatic — distinct as a choice, harmonious together.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 4 vs 3), so neither reads brighter in a room. The ΔE 9.5 gap is real but not dramatic — distinct as a choice, harmonious together.
Formal Maroon reads slightly lighter (LRV 9 vs 4), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms. At ΔE 11.5 these are two genuinely different directions, not variations on a theme.
