Agreeable Gray vs Repose Gray: The Definitive Sherwin-Williams Comparison

Two of Sherwin-Williams' best-selling neutrals share an aisle, an undertone family, and a fan base — and they are constantly mistaken for each other. Agreeable Gray (SW 7029) and Repose Gray (SW 7015) both belong to that hard-to-name 'warm gray with brown notes' category that defines a decade of American interiors. They are not interchangeable. The 8-point gap in their LRV — small on paper, huge in a real room — changes how each color behaves under your light, against your trim, and in your photos. Here's how to choose between them with confidence.

Side-by-Side at a Glance

The one-sentence version: Agreeable Gray is the lighter, warmer, more beige-leaning option that disappears into the background. Repose Gray is the slightly deeper, slightly cooler greige that adds visible color without committing to a true gray. If you want walls to feel airy and almost-neutral, Agreeable Gray. If you want walls that read as a confident gray-with-warmth, Repose Gray.

Agreeable Gray (SW 7029) — The Lighter, Warmer Greige

Agreeable Gray's defining characteristic is its warmth. With a hue around 39° (well into the yellow-orange territory) and only 13% saturation, it carries a clear warm beige undertone that pulls it away from a neutral gray and toward something most designers shorthand as 'greige' — gray + beige. The LRV of 60 puts it firmly in the 'light neutral' category: bright enough to keep an average-light living room feeling open, light enough that it doesn't darken a small space. In strong natural light, the warm undertone reads as clean and inviting. In dim or north-facing light, the warmth pushes forward and the color can read almost beige rather than gray. This is why so many homeowners report 'I painted my room Agreeable Gray and it looks tan' — the LRV stays the same, but the warm undertone gets amplified by warm artificial light or dampened cool natural light.

Repose Gray (SW 7015) — The Deeper, More Balanced Greige

Repose Gray sits 8 LRV points lower than Agreeable Gray, which is the entire reason it behaves differently in a room. At LRV 52 it absorbs more light than it reflects, so walls read as a confident mid-tone instead of a near-white background. The hue (40°) is nearly identical to Agreeable Gray, but the saturation is lower (10%), which makes the color hold its 'gray' character rather than tipping toward beige. The result is a paint that reads as warm without reading as obviously beige — a true balanced greige. Repose Gray is also more lighting-stable than Agreeable Gray. The lower LRV means there's less white substrate to amplify whatever undertone the room's light has, so Repose Gray looks more consistent across north-facing, south-facing, and warm-LED lit rooms.

Direct Comparison: The Numbers

LRV: Agreeable Gray 60, Repose Gray 52 — an 8-point difference, which is enough to clearly perceive in a side-by-side test. Hue: virtually identical (39° vs 40°), so the temperature direction is the same — both warm. Saturation: Agreeable Gray 13%, Repose Gray 10% — Agreeable Gray carries slightly more pigment, which contributes to its 'beige' read. Lightness: Agreeable Gray 79%, Repose Gray 73%. Hex: #D1CBC0 vs #C2BDB3. Undertone classification: Agreeable Gray is 'warm beige', Repose Gray is 'warm greige'. The deltaE between the two is small — they are clearly the same family — but the perceived difference in a finished room is significant because the LRV changes how much light bounces back into the space.

Lighting Behavior: How Each Color Shifts

Agreeable Gray under different light: in south-facing direct sun it reads as a clean light greige with a faint warm glow; under warm 2700K LED it pushes noticeably toward beige; in north-facing daylight it reads more neutral but slightly cool; in cool 4000K+ LED it can flatten and look chalky. Repose Gray under different light: south-facing direct sun reads as a true mid-tone warm gray; warm LED warms it slightly but does not push it to beige (the lower LRV resists the shift); north-facing daylight is its sweet spot — Repose Gray reads as a balanced cool-warm hybrid that flatters white trim; cool LED can mute the warmth slightly but the color holds its character. The takeaway: Agreeable Gray is more variable across lighting conditions, while Repose Gray is more stable.

Which One for Which Room?

Living rooms

Agreeable Gray is the safer pick for most living rooms because the higher LRV keeps the space feeling open and the warm undertone flatters mixed furniture and natural fabrics. Repose Gray works beautifully in living rooms with abundant natural light, high ceilings, or rooms that need a more grounded, designed feel.

Bedrooms

Repose Gray often outperforms Agreeable Gray in bedrooms because the slightly lower LRV creates a more enveloping, restful feel — exactly what most bedrooms benefit from. Agreeable Gray works in bedrooms that double as morning offices or guest rooms where you want the room to feel bright on entry.

Kitchens

Agreeable Gray is the more common kitchen choice because kitchens have a lot of competing visual elements (cabinets, backsplash, counters) and a higher-LRV wall lets those elements take the lead. Repose Gray works in kitchens with very light cabinetry where you want the wall to provide some visual depth.

Home offices

Both work. Agreeable Gray on walls keeps an office feeling bright and reduces eye fatigue under monitor light. Repose Gray creates a more focused, library-like atmosphere that some people find better for deep work. The decision often comes down to how much natural light the room gets — bright office, either works; dim office, lean Agreeable Gray.

Bathrooms

Agreeable Gray is dominant in bathrooms because the high LRV bounces task lighting around small spaces and pairs cleanly with white tile and white fixtures. Repose Gray works in larger bathrooms with significant natural light and warmer fixture finishes (brass, brushed gold).

Pairing Each with Trim, Cabinets, and Coordinating Colors

Both colors pair beautifully with the same trim white — Sherwin-Williams Extra White (SW 7006, LRV 86) is the go-to companion for both, providing the high-contrast architectural pop that modern interiors expect. For a softer, more traditional look, both also work with Benjamin Moore White Dove (OC-17, LRV 83) for trim. Coordinating colors that work for both: Sea Salt (SW 6204) for a soft green accent, Naval (SW 6244) for a dramatic deep blue, and Iron Ore (SW 7069) for high-contrast deep neutral. Where the two diverge: Agreeable Gray's warmer undertone makes it pair better with brass, warm wood, and cream fabrics. Repose Gray's more balanced undertone gives it more flexibility — it works equally with brass, brushed nickel, and matte black hardware.

When Neither Is Right: Adjacent Alternatives

If Agreeable Gray feels too beige in your room, the answer is usually not Repose Gray — it's a cooler-undertone gray entirely (try Mindful Gray SW 7016, which keeps the LRV similar to Repose Gray but pulls the undertone slightly cooler). If Repose Gray feels too dark, the natural step up is Agreeable Gray. If you want true warmth and don't mind crossing into beige territory, Accessible Beige (SW 7036, LRV 56) carries more visible warmth than either. The full Sherwin-Williams warm-neutral family — Agreeable Gray, Repose Gray, Mindful Gray, Accessible Beige — gives you four steps along the same warmth axis at different LRVs and saturations. Picking among them is mostly about LRV.

Frequently Asked Questions