Are Taupe & Greige The Same?

What’s the difference between taupe & greige paint colors?

Taupe and greige – two words that are forever getting mixed up in the minds of homeowners and designers alike.

It’s like comparing merlot to cabernet—both look similar and serve a similar purpose, yet there are subtle differences that set them apart. And you’ll find no shortage of explanations and opinions on what greige and taupe are, but I’m going to simplify and clarify. Because guess what…

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There isn’t a huge difference between them (which is why it’s so friggin’ confusing). 

Now, this might go deeper than you’re comfortable with (that’s what she said), so take a deep breath, a sip of wine, and open your mind (insert monastic chant here…)

First of all, let’s get the basic descriptions down pat…

WHAT TYPE OF PAINT COLOR IS GREIGE?

Greige is a mix of gray and tan. Some greiges sit in the middle with no preference, while others lean toward gray or tan, depending on their temperature!

Greiges can be dark, with LRVs hovering around 8…

REVIEWS: SW Porpoise & Anonymous | SW Adaptive Shade

Or, they can be light, like Sherwin Williams Useful Gray…

Here’s a Peel & Stick of Useful Gray

FUN FACT: Greige is more closely related to tan and its yellow-green undertones than to beige and its orange (most often, orange-pink undertones). If you add enough warmth to greige, you create a tan paint color.

WHAT TYPE OF PAINT COLOR IS TAUPE?

Taupe is also a mix of gray and beige. Some taupes are more or less balanced, whereas others lean more gray or more beige, depending on their temperature.

Taupes can be lovely, dark, and grounded like Sherwin Williams Manor House…

Or, soft and light like Sherwin Williams City Loft…

Sherwin Wlliams City Loft Paint Color Review

FUN FACT: Taupe is more closely related to beige and its orange (orange-pink) undertones than to tan and its yellow-green undertones. If you add enough warmth to taupe, it turns into beige.

There, clear as mud, RIGHT?

Paint Colour Review of Sherwin Williams Anew Gray

Don’t worry, there’s ONE word that will make the above make sense…undertones.

GREIGE PAINT COLORS & THEIR UNDERTONES

Greige paint colors favor a GREEN undertone. It doesn’t matter if it’s a WARMER greige (leaning closer to beige) or a COOLER greige (leaning closer to gray). It doesn’t matter if it’s a dark greige or a light greige…

If it favours a green undertone and is between gray and beige, it’s greige.

Paint Colour Review of Sherwin Williams Amazing Gray

• Add warmth (brown) to greige, and it turns into tan. Why? Tan and greige paint colors share green and yellow undertones—greige is just a bit COOLER than tan (thanks to more gray).
• Add gray to greige, and it turns into a warm gray with green undertones. Gray-green and greige share the same green undertone—gray is just COOLER than greige.

TAUPE PAINT COLORS & THEIR UNDERTONES

Taupe paint colours tend to favour a PURPLE (or purple-pink) undertone. Light, dark, and everything in between…

If it’s between gray and beige and has a purple or purple-pink undertone, it’s taupe. 

• Taupes that are warmer-looking will have a purple-PINK undertone—the warmer a taupe is, the more the purple drops back, leaving the undertones more pink-inclined. Add more warmth to a taupe and it can turn into beige. Many beiges and taupes are related as they both can share a pink undertone.

• Taupes that are cooler-looking (though still warm colors) lean toward gray and lose most of the pink, moving toward purple. By the way, purple can also have a blue undertone, making it a purple-blue, but you’ll only find those undertones in the gray end of things/

Sherwin Williams Alpaca (below) is a taupe paint color, thanks to its purple-pink undertones…

FLEXIBLE GREIGE & TAUPE PAINT COLORS

Greiges that don’t commit enough to green, taupes that don’t commit to much purple—these are the ones causing a lot of the confusion.

Because what happens when a paint colour doesn’t COMMIT to its undertones?

It leaves its doors open to other undertones. It’s like dating someone who won’t call you his girlfriend—you know he’s leaving that door open to other options (story of my young life)…

Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray is a greige that leans MORE into gray than beige. But it’s so flexible that it can look purple at times. 

This means some greiges and taupes can flash purple or green, depending on the room’s exposure, immediate surroundings, and personal perception.

Unless the undertones are obvious, be ready for surprises! 

This next photo shows Benjamin Moore Rockport Gray. Rockport Gray is a gray with brown and a very mild green undertone (making it a greige). However, because it commits slightly to its undertone, it can flex a wink into purple – not enough to make it a taupe, but enough to make a girl second-guess herself.

Paint Color Review: Benjamin Moore Rockport Gray

Benjamin Moore Pashmina (below) is one of my absolute favorite greige paint colours. While it leans warmer than many of the top greige paint colours, because it harbors a wee green undertone, it’s a greige!

Paint Color Review of Benjamin Moore Pashmina (SW Urbane Bronze is on the island)

ARE GREIGE & TAUPE PAINT COLORS TRENDY?

Right now, yes, greiges and taupes are in style. With trends firmly out of gray and well into the warmer worlds, many find that greige and taupe are great transitional colors between different styles and color palettes.

But are they timeless?

While some greiges and taupes will have more longevity than others, no, they aren’t timeless. However, they can have more of a lifetime than some more committed grays (decidedly cool) or overly warm neutrals. This is thanks to their MODERATE approach to temperature!

The Most Timeless Paint Colors

AT THE END OF THE DAY

It doesn’t matter WHAT it’s called—if you love it and it has the undertones and general look you’re going for, then you can call it PERFECT!

READ MORE

Sherwin Williams 6 Best DARKER Greige & Taupe Paint Colours

The Best Light to Medium Taupe Paint Colors

The Best Light Greige Paint Colors

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ORIGINALLY WRITTEN IN 2017, AWESOMELY UPDATED IN 2025