First Star

SW 7646 · Sherwin-Williams

Sherwin-Williams

First Star

SW 7646

Hex code

#DAD9D4

Light reflectance value (LRV)

69.5Light, brightens without washing out

0 black100 white

Undertone

Faint yellow-beige, a true neutral

Color family: White
Sold for: Interior and exterior

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Sherwin-Williams First Star SW 7646 is a very pale gray, so light that Sherwin-Williams files it with the whites. It has an LRV of 70, bright enough to lift a hallway or a north room while still showing a gray edge against white trim. Our method reads it as neutral, with a faint yellow-beige lean too small to see on a wall. It is a whole-house color for people who want gray with none of the beige of a greige.

Updated September 2, 2026

Is First Star warm or cool? Undertones by the numbers

too close to gray to lean

Undertone

Faint yellow-beige

graysaturated

Barely off gray.

First Star has almost no color in it by measurement. There is a faint trace of yellow, an even fainter tilt toward green, and no blue or red. That emptiness is what makes it behave. Beside Extra White SW 7006 trim it reads as a clean pale gray. Beside a warm white such as Alabaster SW 7008 the green tilt can show, and the walls look a hair sage. Warm oak floors make it look cooler and grayer by contrast; gray tile makes it look almost white. Drift of Mist SW 9166 is the same lightness with real warmth, which reads as beige beside First Star. Crushed Ice SW 7647 is the closest neutral, four points darker and just as colorless.

First Star in north, south, east and west light

First Star is one of the safer picks for a north-facing room, where its lack of warmth is an advantage. Cool light makes it a little darker and cooler, nothing more, and it never goes muddy the way a greige can. In south light it lifts toward white and picks up a whisper of warmth. East and west rooms barely move it through the day. Bulb color decides the rest: 2700K warms it toward greige, 4000K cools it toward blue-gray, and 3000K leaves it the neutral gray on the chip.

Watch for

Under 4000K bulbs it reads as a cool blue-gray, though there is no blue in it
Beside a warm white like Alabaster SW 7008 it can look a hair green
In a bright south room it can wash out to near white, so sample the darkest wall

Best rooms and surfaces for First Star

First Star suits houses with white trim and a lot of daylight. It is light enough for hallways, stair walls and a north bedroom, and gray enough that a living room does not look unfinished. It sits well with gray-washed and white oak floors, black metal, white stone and cool tile. Against orange-toned oak it looks cold. On kitchen cabinets it reads as a whisper of gray against white walls. That soft look needs the walls in a true white such as Extra White SW 7006. In a bathroom it is one of the few near-whites that holds under cool LEDs and white tile. It makes a weak accent wall; there is not enough color in it to read as a choice.

First Star on an exterior

First Star is sold for exterior use, and outside it reads as a soft white-gray rather than a gray. In full sun it goes nearly white. It suits a house that should look white from the street without the glare of a true white. On a shaded north wall the gray comes back and the siding looks like pale concrete. Extra White SW 7006 trim keeps the contrast honest. A dark door in Iron Ore SW 7069 or Tricorn Black SW 6258 gives the front some weight.

Try First Star on your own walls

Upload a photo of your room, or the outside of your house, and TryMyHome renders First Star 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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First Star vs Agreeable Gray, Crushed Ice, Drift of Mist and Repose Gray

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Agreeable Gray SW 7029, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

First Star vs Agreeable Gray SW 7029

First Star is noticeably lighter; undertone faint yellow-beige vs subtle yellow-beige.

Agreeable Gray SW 7029 is nine points darker at an LRV of 60 and clearly warm, a greige with visible beige in it. First Star is lighter and colorless by comparison. On the same wall Agreeable Gray reads as a color and First Star as a tinted white. Choose Agreeable Gray for walls that should read warm and mid-light. Choose First Star for a dim room, a low ceiling, or a house that wants gray without beige.

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Crushed Ice SW 7647, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

First Star vs Crushed Ice SW 7647

First Star is noticeably lighter; both have a faint yellow-beige undertone.

Crushed Ice SW 7647 is the nearest full-page neutral to First Star, four points darker at an LRV of 66 with the same faint lean. Both read as pale gray with no warmth to speak of. The difference is depth: Crushed Ice holds up as a gray in a bright room, where First Star can fade to white. Pick Crushed Ice for a sunny living room. Pick First Star for a hallway or a north bedroom.

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Drift of Mist SW 9166, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

First Star vs Drift of Mist SW 9166

First Star is a touch lighter; undertone faint yellow-beige vs subtle yellow-beige.

Drift of Mist SW 9166 matches First Star in lightness, within a point, but it is warm where First Star is neutral. Side by side Drift of Mist looks like a pale greige and First Star like a pale gray. Drift of Mist is the one for warm floors and cream trim. First Star is the one for white trim, black metal and cool tile, and it is the safer of the two under cool bulbs.

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Repose Gray SW 7015, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

First Star vs Repose Gray SW 7015

First Star is much lighter; undertone faint yellow-beige vs subtle yellow-beige.

Repose Gray SW 7015 is 11 points darker at an LRV of 58, a proper light gray with a small warm lean. First Star is the tinted-white version of the same idea. Repose Gray gives walls real presence against white trim; First Star keeps a room airy. One way to use them is together, Repose Gray on the main walls and First Star in a hallway or a small bedroom.

Questions about First Star

Does First Star look blue or green?

Neither by measurement, but it can look like either by contrast. First Star has a faint yellow lean and an even fainter tilt toward green, with no blue at all. Under 4000K bulbs or beside a warm white it can read a touch cool or a hair sage. Beside a true white and under 3000K bulbs it reads as a plain pale gray. Blue only appears when there is nothing warm in the room.

What colors go with First Star?

The trim white Sherwin-Williams lists for it is Extra White SW 7006. The listed accents are Ellie Gray SW 7650, a mid gray, and Deep Forest Brown SW 9175, a near-black. It also suits white oak and gray-washed floors, black window frames, marble and cool tile. For color, a navy such as Naval SW 6244 or a deep green such as Pewter Green SW 6208 holds against it on an island.

Is First Star gray or white?

Both, depending on the wall it is on. Sherwin-Williams files it in the white family, and on a large wall in a bright room it reads as a white with a gray cast. Against a true white trim, in a hallway or in a north room it reads as a pale gray. To make it look gray, pair it with Extra White SW 7006 trim; to make it look white, run the trim in the same color.

What is one shade lighter or darker than First Star?

On its fan-deck strip the next step lighter is Eider White SW 7014, four points up and a touch softer. The next step darker is Big Chill SW 7648, eight points down and a true light gray. Among its closest matches, Solstice SW 9571 is the near twin at the same lightness, and Crushed Ice SW 7647 sits four points darker.

Is First Star good for a whole house?

Yes, and that is its most common use. It is light enough for rooms with no window and gray enough to keep a big living room from reading as unpainted. The catch is warmth. A whole house of First Star with orange oak floors and cream trim looks cold, so run it with white trim and cooler floors. In a house full of warm wood, Drift of Mist SW 9166 is the better whole-house pick.

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 First Star, checked in morning and evening light, is the last step before a gallon.