Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue 1638

Contents

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Benjamin Moore 1638 on kitchen cabinets (4 photos)
Midnight Blue for exterior (2 photos)
Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue reviews (1 photo)
What are Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue undertones?
Is Midnight Blue 1638 cool or warm?
How light temperature affects on Midnight Blue
Monochromatic color scheme
Complementary color scheme
Color comparison and matching
LRV of Midnight Blue 1638
Color codes
Color equivalents

Official page:	Midnight Blue 1638
Code:	1638
Name:	Midnight Blue
Brand:	Benjamin Moore

What color is Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue?

Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue 1638 is a deep, muted blue-gray with a distinctly cool cast and softened charcoal undertone. Its low saturation keeps it from reading as a bright navy, giving the color a grounded, architectural look. In daylight, the blue-gray character is easier to see, while dim rooms or evening light can make it appear closer to dark graphite. Use it on a study, dining room walls, exterior trim, or built-in cabinetry when you want definition without a near-black finish. Pair Midnight Blue with clean off-whites, pale gray stone, weathered wood, brushed nickel, or matte black hardware.

Benjamin Moore 1638 on kitchen cabinets (4 photos)

Want a stylish kitchen? View real-life photo examples of this fascinating cool grey hue is paired with backsplashes, countertops, and hardware.

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@tobias_designllc

Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue kitchen cabinets

@tobias_designllc

Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue kitchen cabinets color

@livingonlivingston

Midnight Blue for exterior (2 photos)

Looking for a fresh new look for your house exterior or starting from skretch? We’ve collected pictures of real-life homes that have been painted with this cool grey hue. Find inspiration for your house’s exterior, front doors, gates, shutters, frames or windows.

Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue house exterior color

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Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue reviews

View the photos of real spaces painted with this grey that were not included in specific categories. Close-ups, painted furniture, storages and dressers, hallways, stairs and ceilings.

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What are Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue undertones?

Midnight Blue reads as a very deep, low-saturation blue that sits close to charcoal or black rather than a clearly vivid navy. In the supplied digital sample, the blue direction is subtle, so any undertone reads more as a restrained cool-blue bias than a strong secondary color. Benjamin Moore describes it as “a deep, intriguing blue that verges on black,” which aligns with its visibly dark, near-neutral character. Warm artificial light may make its blue cast less noticeable and bring it closer to black-charcoal, while cool daylight can make the blue character easier to see.

Manufacturer information used in this description: official color page.

HEX value:

#494E52

RGB code:

73, 78, 82

Is Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue cool or warm?

warm

cool

With a hue of 207°, this black leans cool, but it is near the neutral line and may feel warmer in certain lighting.

1638 Midnight Blue HSL code: 207, 6%, 30%

Hue - degree on a color wheel from 0 to 360. 0 is red, 120 is green, and 240 is blue.
Saturation is expressed as a percentage. At 0%, it appears as a shade of grey, and at 100%, it is in full color.
Lightness is also a percentage value. 0% is black, and 100% is white.

How light temperature affects Midnight Blue

Natural Lighting. During the day, natural light shifts from about 2000 K at sunrise/sunset to 5500–6500 K at noon.

Sunrise

Morning

Noon

Afternoon

Sunset

In addition, natural-light temperature depends on its direction:

Direction of sunlight	Visible temp.	Hue	Duration
North	Cool	Bluish	All day
East	Warm	Yellow	Before noon
West	Warm	Orange-red	After noon
South	Warm	Orange-yellow	All day

Artificial Lighting. When choosing bulbs, pay attention to their color temperature in Kelvins.
Use the slider to see how this black shade looks under different lighting:

2000K

3000K

4000K

5000K

6000K

7000K

Coordinating colors.
Colors that go with Benjamin Moore Midnight Blue:

Monochromatic color scheme

This scheme consists of various shades, tints, and tones of a single color. While it offers a perfect combination of hues, without accent décor it may become monotonous.

Lighter shades

1638
Midnight Blue

Darker shades

1638
Midnight Blue

Complementary color scheme

This color scheme is a combination of two shades that are opposite each other on the color wheel. The high contrast between these colors creates a vibrant and dynamic visual effect. For the color Midnight Blue with a green hue, complementary colors are those with a red hue close to 27, such as Benjamin Moore Antique Pearl and Night Shade.

1638
Midnight Blue

Compare
Benjamin Moore
Midnight Blue 1638
to any other colors

Benjamin Moore
Midnight Blue 1638
color equivalents

LRV of Midnight Blue

Midnight Blue has an LRV of 8.22% and refers to Dark colors which means that this color almost does not reflect light. Why LRV is important?

Light Reflectance Value scale illustration

Light Reflectance Value measures the amount of visible and usable light that reflects from a painted surface.
Simply put, the higher the LRV of a paint color, the brighter the room you will get.
The scale goes from 0% (absolute black, absorbing all light) to 100% (pure white, reflecting all light).

Act like a pro: When choosing paint with an LRV of 8.22%, pay attention to your bulbs' brightness. Light brightness is measured in lumens. The lower the paint's LRV, the higher lumen level you need. Every square foot of room needs at least 40 lumens. That means for a 200 ft² living room you'll need about 8000 lumens of light – e.g., eight 1000 lm bulbs.

Color codes

We have collected almost every possible color code you could ever need.
Not sure what the difference between HEX and RGB is? We break down color models in plain language. Understanding color models

Format	Code
HEX	#494E52
RGB Decimal	73, 78, 82
RGB Percent	28.63%, 30.59%, 32.16%
HSV	Hue: 207° Saturation: 10.98% Value: 32.16%
HSL	hsl(207, 6, 30)
CMYK	Cyan: 10.98 Magenta: 4.88 Yellow: 0.0 Key: 67.84
YIQ	Y: 76.961 I: -4.265 Q: 0.187
XYZ	X: 6.995 Y: 7.474 Z: 9.055
CIE Lab	L:32.863 a:-1.088 b:-3.05
CIE Luv	L:32.863 u:-2.805 v:-3.61
Decimal	4804178
Hunter Lab	27.339, -2.176, -0.499