Underwater vs Dix Blue
Underwater (Behr) and Dix Blue (Farrow & Ball) come from different manufacturers. Both sit in the blue-grey family, which is useful context if you're narrowing within a single hue direction. The 30-point LRV gap — 41 for Dix Blue vs 11 for Underwater — means Dix Blue will open up a space more effectively. Where Underwater leans blue, Dix Blue reads cool — a distinction that shifts noticeably depending on the light source and surrounding finishes. A ΔE of 30.6 puts these firmly in different territory — two distinct design choices rather than close alternatives. Below you'll find 5 real-room photo comparisons where both colors appear side by side, plus 5 simulated room previews.
Underwater vs Dix Blue in Real Spaces
5 real rooms side by side. Seeing Underwater and Dix Blue in actual rooms makes the difference concrete; browse the spaces below to get a feel for how each color lives on a wall.
Living Room
A living room wall sees more varied light than almost any other surface in the house, which makes the choice between these two more nuanced than a chip suggests. Dix Blue reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Underwater.
Bedroom
Bedrooms are typically lit with warmer, lower light than the rest of the house — a condition that flatters warm tones and deepens cool ones. Dix Blue returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Dining Room
Dining rooms often rely on warm incandescent or candlelight, which flatters warm undertones and mutes cool ones. The LRV gap is large enough that Dix Blue will make the room feel meaningfully brighter than Underwater would.
Front Door
On a front door, the color is both the first and last thing you see — a context where even a modest tonal difference reads clearly. Dix Blue reflects noticeably more light off the walls, making the space read more open than Underwater.
Kitchen Cabinets
Cabinet color is always seen in context — against countertops, backsplash, and hardware — which amplifies undertone differences that might disappear on a plain wall. Dix Blue returns significantly more light to the room — in a smaller or darker space, that difference in perceived brightness is hard to miss.
Color Details
Underwater vs Dix Blue Simulated Comparison
5 simulated room previews — drag the slider on each to see Underwater on one side and Dix Blue on the other.
Digital color is approximate. These simulations are generated from the manufacturer's hex values and overlaid on grayscale room photos — your screen's calibration, brightness, and viewing angle all affect how they render. Before committing to either color, test physical samples in your own space under the light you actually live with.
More Underwater comparisons
See how Underwater stacks up against other well-photographed colors across different brands and tones.
Ammonite reflects far more light (LRV 69 vs 11), opening up a space where Underwater encloses it.
At LRV 83 vs 11, White Dove is decisively the brighter choice.
A 5-point LRV gap (11 vs 6) makes Underwater the marginally brighter of the two.
Purbeck Stone reflects far more light (LRV 52 vs 11), opening up a space where Underwater encloses it.
Evergreen Fog reflects far more light (LRV 30 vs 11), opening up a space where Underwater encloses it.
At LRV 52 vs 11, Mizzle is decisively the brighter choice.
Agreeable Gray reflects far more light (LRV 60 vs 11), opening up a space where Underwater encloses it.
At LRV 58 vs 11, Accessible Beige is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 27 vs 11, Denim Drift is decisively the brighter choice.
French Gray reflects far more light (LRV 43 vs 11), opening up a space where Underwater encloses it.
Underwater reads slightly lighter (LRV 11 vs 4), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 55 vs 11, Tranquil Dawn is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 13 vs 11), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 44 vs 11, Hardwick White is decisively the brighter choice.
Pure White reflects far more light (LRV 84 vs 11), opening up a space where Underwater encloses it.
Artichoke reads slightly lighter (LRV 21 vs 11), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.
At LRV 66 vs 11, Balboa Mist is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 74 vs 11, Shoji White is decisively the brighter choice.
At LRV 83 vs 11, Snowbound is decisively the brighter choice.
Pigeon reflects far more light (LRV 51 vs 11), opening up a space where Underwater encloses it.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 12 vs 11), so neither reads brighter in a room.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 11 vs 8), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 68 vs 11, Skimming Stone is decisively the brighter choice.
Their light reflectance is nearly identical (LRV 12 vs 11), so neither reads brighter in a room.
At LRV 45 vs 11, Saybrook Sage is decisively the brighter choice.
Pale Green reflects far more light (LRV 31 vs 11), opening up a space where Underwater encloses it.
Underwater reads slightly lighter (LRV 11 vs 7), a gap that shows most in low-lit rooms.