Swiss Coffee

OC-45 · Benjamin Moore

Benjamin Moore

Swiss Coffee

OC-45

Hex code

#EEECE1

Light reflectance value (LRV)

81.9Off-white, light and airy

0 black100 white

Undertone

Subtle yellow-beige, a warm color

Color family: White
Sold for: Interior and exterior

Try it on your walls Get a sample

Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee OC-45 is a warm off-white with enough cream in it to read as a color rather than a plain white. An LRV of 82 keeps a room bright while stopping short of the glare a true white gives. It is one of the most searched Benjamin Moore whites, used on walls, kitchen cabinets and siding. Several other brands sell a paint called Swiss Coffee, and those are different colors.

Is Swiss Coffee warm or cool? Undertones by the numbers

leans yellow

Undertone

Subtle yellow-beige

graysaturated

A gentle lean, quiet on the wall.

Measured, Swiss Coffee holds a clear dose of yellow with only a trace of green behind it, which is why the cream shows on a wall where it stays hidden on the chip. Against white trim it looks unmistakably warm; against oak floors and tan tile the yellow settles down and the wall just reads soft. Next to White Dove OC-17 it is the creamier of the two, and next to Cloud White OC-130 the gap is a shade less green rather than more yellow. Cool gray tile is where it struggles, since that company turns the wall faintly buttery.

Swiss Coffee in north, south, east and west light

In a north-facing room Swiss Coffee gives up some of its cream and reads a step grayer, though the warm base keeps it from going cold the way a cleaner white would. South light does the opposite and brings the cream forward, most of all through the afternoon. East rooms show it warmest at breakfast and grayer by evening, so judge a sample at the hour you actually use the room. Late western sun can tip it toward gold. Bulbs at 2700K to 3000K hold it true, while 4000K drains the warmth out of it.

Watch for

Goes gold on a west wall in late afternoon sun
Cool white LEDs pull the cream out and leave it flat
Next to gray floor tile the yellow reads stronger than it does on the chip

Best rooms and surfaces for Swiss Coffee

Swiss Coffee is a wall color that behaves like a white and a cream at once, which is why it carries bedrooms, living rooms and hallways in one pass. On kitchen cabinets it is a common pick for a warm kitchen: it sits with butcher block, brass and unlacquered wood without the sterile look a bright white gives. Bathrooms are the room to test first, because a small space under cool lighting shows the yellow more than a big one does. As a whole-house color it works best where floors and counters lean warm; against blue-gray tile or a stark white ceiling it can look dingy. Trim in the same color at a higher sheen keeps everything reading as one white.

Swiss Coffee on an exterior

Benjamin Moore sells Swiss Coffee for exterior use, and outside is where the cream reads as a soft white rather than a color. Full sun bleaches it close to plain white on a south-facing wall, while the shaded sides of the house keep the warmth, so a body color in Swiss Coffee looks gentler than the chip suggests. It holds up against black window frames, a dark roof and warm stone. As trim it sits too close in tone to most warm siding to draw much of a line.

Try Swiss Coffee on your own walls

Upload a photo of your room, or the outside of your house, and TryMyHome renders Swiss Coffee onto the walls so you can judge it in your light, with your floors and furniture. Your first five renders are free.

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Swiss Coffee vs White Dove, Alabaster, Shoji White, Greek Villa and Simply White

Living room walls rendered in Benjamin Moore White Dove OC-17, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

Swiss Coffee vs White Dove OC-17

Swiss Coffee is a touch darker; undertone subtle yellow-beige vs subtle yellow-leaning green.

White Dove OC-17 is a point brighter at 83, and the real gap is in the lean: White Dove carries a trace of green that keeps its yellow in check, where Swiss Coffee lets the yellow through. Side by side, one reads white and the other reads cream. Choose White Dove if the walls should stay white beside white trim, and Swiss Coffee if you want the room warmer than the trim.

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Alabaster SW 7008, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

Swiss Coffee vs Alabaster SW 7008

Swiss Coffee is a touch darker; both have a subtle yellow-beige undertone.

Alabaster SW 7008 is the closest thing Sherwin-Williams has to this color, and by measurement the two are near twins at 82 apiece. Alabaster carries a shade more gray in its beige, so it settles quieter in a bright room, while Swiss Coffee stays creamier under warm light. Either works where the other does, so pick by the brand you are buying from rather than by the difference.

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Shoji White SW 7042, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

Swiss Coffee vs Shoji White SW 7042

Swiss Coffee is noticeably lighter; both have a subtle yellow-beige undertone.

Shoji White SW 7042 is eight points darker at 74 and reads as a greige rather than a white. The two share a warm beige lean, but Shoji White has the depth to hold a wall against white trim, while Swiss Coffee needs the trim to be brighter than it is. Go to Shoji White when the walls should visibly be a color, and stay with Swiss Coffee when they should still pass as white.

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Greek Villa SW 7551, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

Swiss Coffee vs Greek Villa SW 7551

Swiss Coffee is a touch darker; both have a subtle yellow-beige undertone.

Greek Villa SW 7551 measures two points brighter at 84 and belongs to the same warm beige family. What separates them is how far the cream is allowed to go: Greek Villa keeps its warmth on a tight rein and reads as a plain soft white, while Swiss Coffee is the one people call cream. In a dim room Greek Villa is the safer of the pair, and in a bright one Swiss Coffee has more to say.

Living room walls rendered in Benjamin Moore Simply White OC-117, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

Swiss Coffee vs Simply White OC-117

Swiss Coffee is noticeably darker; undertone subtle yellow-beige vs subtle yellow-leaning green.

Simply White OC-117 sits well above this color for brightness, and its yellow behaves differently, held back by a green cast that Swiss Coffee does not have. On a wall Simply White stays clean and reflective while Swiss Coffee softens everything around it. Pick Simply White for a bright kitchen with white cabinets, and Swiss Coffee for bedrooms and older houses with wood trim.

Questions about Swiss Coffee

Is Behr Swiss Coffee the same as Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee?

No. Behr, Valspar, Kelly-Moore and Dunn-Edwards all sell a paint named Swiss Coffee, and each is mixed to its own formula. The name describes an idea of a color, not a shared standard, so two brands' samples will not match on a wall. Buy the one your store carries and sample that can rather than trusting the name.

What is the Sherwin-Williams equivalent of Swiss Coffee?

Cotton SW 9581 and Alabaster SW 7008 are the closest by measurement, both near enough to be hard to tell apart on a wall. Alabaster is the one with its own page here and the one most stores can mix on the spot. Cold Foam SW 9504 comes next, a fraction brighter. None is an official match, so sample before committing.

Does Swiss Coffee look yellow?

Yes, more than most whites, and that is what people buy it for. Its measurement holds a clear amount of yellow with almost nothing cooling it, so on a wall it reads cream rather than white. Warm bulbs and warm floors push it further. Cool gray finishes and blue-white bulbs make the yellow look stronger by contrast, not weaker.

Is Swiss Coffee good for kitchen cabinets?

Yes, and cabinets are one of its common uses. It gives a kitchen an older, softer look than a bright white does, and it hides everyday marks better than a stark finish. It needs warm company: wood, brass, cream stone. Against cool gray quartz or blue-gray tile the doors can read yellow, so hold a sample at the counter first.

What colors go with Swiss Coffee?

Benjamin Moore pairs it with White Drifts OC-138 and Fossil AF-65 as quiet neighbors, then Lush AF-475, a muted green, and Newburg Green HC-158, a deep blue-green, for contrast. Beyond that list it sits well with warm wood, aged brass and black metal. Cool grays and blue-whites are the pairing to avoid, since they make the walls look yellow.

Get a sample before you paint

Use the visualizer to narrow your shortlist, then confirm the finalist on your actual wall. A peel-and-stick sample of Swiss Coffee, checked in morning and evening light, is the last step before a gallon.