Sherwin Williams Accessible Beige: Not Your Typical Beige

Sharing is caring!

Sherwin Williams Accessible Beige is not your typical builder’s beige. I know you are wondering why we are discussing a beige color, isn’t that so 90s? That builder beige is outdated but this is the new and improved beige that you need to take a look at.

After that ’90s beige was deemed outdated the paint world went full on gray. Gray became the neutral that everyone loves and has been that way for a long time.

At first, the shift was toward the cool end of the gray spectrum but as time has gone on the pendulum has swung back toward the warmer side. Greige is the marriage of gray and beige and while this is definitely a beige color it falls on the greige spectrum.

*This post contains affiliate links. For more details see my full disclosure.

Sherwin Williams Accessible Beige

Accessible Beige is a warm paint color that has a lot of gray in it. It brings in the warmth without becoming to beigey (yes I think I just made up that word) like the rooms of the 90s and early 2000s.

You might think this wouldn’t be a popular color because beige went out a while ago but it’s actually one of Sherwin Williams’s top 50 colors.

What does that mean? I think it means that warmth is making a comeback but in a more modern and updated way.

AB Stats

Here are the details on this beautiful paint color:

• R: 209
• G: 199
• B: 184
• Hex Value: #D1C7B8
• Color Family(s): Neutral
• Color Collections: Living Well (Balance), Top 50 Colors, Colormix Forecast 2022 (Method), Gallery Series, Top Interior Colors, Top Exterior Colors, Pottery Barn Kids Collection 2024, Pottery Barn Teen Collection 2024

That is a lot of color collections to be a part of! Obviously, this is still a well-loved color.

Accessible Beige Undertones

Accessible Beige has warm green undertones along with gray that keeps the color from being too warm. Because it has this gray it’s considered a greige but it leans more heavily on the beige side of that spectrum.

What is the LRV of AB?

LRV, or Light Reflective Value, is a scale that measures the amount of light a paint color reflects. It’s from 0-100 with zero being the darkest black and 100 being the brightest white.

Accessible Beige sits at 58 which makes it a mid-toned color but close to being a light color. I usually say 60 is the cross between mid and light tones. So it’s very close to being light.

Does Accessible Beige go with wood tones?

Yes, Accessible Beige pairs really well with different wood tones. If you have the honey oak tones in your woodwork or kitchen cabinets this color will work really well with that.

Is it a warm or cool-toned color?

Accessible Beige is definitely a warm-toned paint color. Most beiges have a lot of yellow undertones, but not AB. This paint color, while leaning grayer, doesn’t have a lot of yellow. In some lights, you will catch a touch of green undertones.

Because it doesn’t have a lot of yellow it’s not really a true beige, that’s why you can call it a greige.

How Lighting Affects AB

Lighting makes a huge difference when it comes to how a color looks in a room. A single paint color can look very different based on the lighting it receives. Here are some of the basics:

• North-facing rooms have a light that tends to be a little cooler in nature and will come off slightly blue. Light colors will be a bit more muted or washed out while darker colors will be stunning.
• East-facing rooms will have brighter light in the morning and less in the evenings. The evening light will be a bit cooler. In the morning with sunrise, the bright sun will be warm. Warm color palettes are great for these spaces because they will help balance the cool feel of the evenings.
• South-facing rooms have consistent warm light throughout the day. The light really shows off the colors, dark will be very bright, and light colors will shine. Both warm and cool color palettes look good in a south-facing room.
• West-facing rooms have warm light in the evening and cooler light in the morning. Basically, it’s the opposite of east-facing.

How to know which paint color is right for your home?

You can purchase paint samples at the store and paint a swatch on your wall. But then you are left with a jar of paint that you can’t use for anything else (the paint quality of the samples is not good). Another option is Samplize.

Samplize is a company that will send you a peel and stick 12×12 inch vinyl sticker you can put on your wall. You can look at it over the course of a couple of days and even try it in different rooms. Then when you are done you can just throw it in the trash.

There is no mess and no waste! I highly recommend Samplize.

Sherwin Williams Accessible Beige Whole Home Color Palette

Get this free whole home color palette for Sherwin Williams Accessible Beige and you will also be part of the At Lane and High Community! You will receive weekly newsletters on new posts and you can unsubscribe anytime.

Where can you use AB?

The simple answer is everywhere! Honestly, this paint color is so neutral that it looks good in any room.

Here are some of my favorite places to use Accessible Beige:

• Exterior
• Kitchen
• Open Concept family rooms to dining rooms
• Basements
• Bedroom
• Bathroom

Accessible Beige in a Dining Room

I love how the black furniture and the white wainscoting contrast with the beige paint color. This is so pretty!

Accessible Beige on Wainscotting

Here you can see Accessible Beige used on the wainscot and how wonderful it looks with the wood vanity.

Accessible Beige in a Family Room

Photo by Le Belle Maison Interiors Inc. – More family room photos

This is a perfect example of a neutral family room from Westlake New Construction. The paint color perfectly goes with the beige on the sofa. With the dark brown floors, this room is so cozy and warm.

Accessible Beige in a Nursery

I love this example of using Accessible Beige in a bedroom, in this case, a nursery. It’s the perfect backdrop for the gray-brown furniture and other neutral accessories in the room.

Best trim colors to pair with AB?

Because Accessible Beige is a warm color I like to pair it with other warm whites or crisp whites.

An example of a warm white would be Sherwin Williams Pure White. Some crisper whites would be Extra White or High Reflective White.

Coordinating colors

Accessible Beige looks great with a whole slew of other colors. I really like to pair it with whites and blacks. That makes the color really shine.

It also looks amazing with greens or other colors with green undertones. Thing earth tone colors.

And finally Accessible Beige looks great with warm grays and cream colors that are warm toned.

Benjamin Moore Equivalent

I have said this before and I will say it again, there are no equivalents between paint manufacturers. That being said, there are colors that are very similar.

The closest color at Benjamin Moore to Accessible Beige is Edgecomb Gray.

Frequently Asked Questions

What colors don’t look good with Accessible Beige?

Belive it or not there are some colors that sort of clash with Accessible Beige. I would stay away from cool grays or cool-toned blues. Also colors that have the same LRV are going to compete with AB.

Can you use Accessible Beige for trim?

You absolutely can but it depends on what your wall color is. If your walls are very light, almost white or dark, almost black, then AB looks amazing!

Are gray and beige out of style?

There are a lot of opinions on this. Beige went out of style after the 90s and early 2000s but it’s making a come back. Not the same beige of earlier but a more modern take on beige (think taupe).

Gray is still very hot even though many people are getting a little sick of it. I think gray is moving to more of a background color and darker colors are being introduced.

Is beige too boring?

Beige can be boring if you are using beige on beige on beige. Like builders used to do. But if you pair beige with other vibrant colors then there is nothing beige about it.

So it all depends on how you use it as to whether it is boring or not.

Is AB more gray or beige?

Accessible Beige is more beige than gray, hence the name.

Is AB darker than Agreeable Gray?

Accessible Beige is slightly darker than Agreeable Gray.

Recap

We went through a lot of information today so let’s do a quick recap of the main details for Accessible Beige.

• Green and gray undertones
• LRV of 58
• Light to mid-toned range color
• Looks great with wood tones
• Will warm up in south facing room
• Will cool down in a north facing room
• Is a great wall color but needs to be paired carefully when used on trim and wainscotting
• The best white is a warm white or crisp white to pair with it
• Looks amazing with other colors that have green undertones
• Most similar color at Benjamin Moore is Edgecomb Gray
• Doesn’t always go well with cool colors especially with blue undertones

Other interesting paint posts:

• Sherwin Williams Passive
• Benjamin Moore Stonington Gray
• Sherwin Williams Alpaca
• Sherwin Williams Repose Gray
• Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter
• Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray
• The Best Blue Gray Paint Colors

I hope you have learned everything you need to know about Sherwin Williams Accessible Beige. As I said before, this isn’t your mother’s beige. This is the updated version that will look beautiful in your home.