Shiitake

SW 9173 · Sherwin-Williams

Sherwin-Williams

Shiitake

SW 9173

Hex code

#C8BCAB

Light reflectance value (LRV)

51.2Light-medium, light with some depth

0 black100 white

Undertone

Noticeable yellow-beige, a warm color

Color family: Neutral
Sold for: Interior and exterior

Try it on your walls Get a sample

Sherwin-Williams Shiitake SW 9173 is a soft warm beige with the gray cast its name suggests, a mushroom tan rather than a sandy one. With an LRV of 51 it sits right at the line between a light wall color and a mid-tone. It brightens a room with good windows and settles in a dim one. Our method reads the undertone as noticeable yellow-beige. It is a bedroom, living-room and cabinet color that people pick when Accessible Beige SW 7036 looks too light.

Updated September 2, 2026

Is Shiitake warm or cool? Undertones by the numbers

leans yellow

Undertone

Noticeable yellow-beige

graysaturated

A visible lean you see in daylight.

Measured, Shiitake carries a clear amount of yellow and a small amount of red. That is the same warm direction as Accessible Beige SW 7036, with a little more color, not less. The mushroom-gray look comes from its depth rather than from gray pigment. Against a crisp white trim it reads as a mild tan. Beside warm oak it turns quieter and more taupe, because the wood takes the yellow. Beside cool gray tile it shows its warmth and can look like a light khaki. Minimalist SW 9611 and Sandbar SW 7547 are close enough to be hard to tell apart. Bungalow Beige SW 7511 has more red and looks pinker next to it.

Shiitake in north, south, east and west light

Shiitake reads best in east light, which keeps it a soft, even beige through the day. In a north-facing room it goes grayer and a shade darker than the chip, and this is where the mushroom look is strongest. It does not turn cold, but a north bedroom in Shiitake feels enclosed rather than airy. South rooms warm it toward tan by afternoon. West rooms are the ones to sample late in the day, since low sun can push it toward gold. Bulbs at 2700K to 3000K keep it true; 4000K bulbs flatten it into a dull gray-beige.

Watch for

In a north bedroom it reads mushroom-gray and a shade darker than the chip
Next to Bungalow Beige SW 7511 or another pink-beige it looks khaki
Under 4000K bulbs it goes dull gray-beige; warm bulbs bring the tan back

Best rooms and surfaces for Shiitake

Shiitake is a bedroom color first: deep enough to feel restful, light enough not to close a room in, and it takes white bedding and oak well. It works in a living room and a family room with decent windows. It is also a natural whole-house partner to Accessible Beige SW 7036, the lighter color in the bright rooms and Shiitake in the ones you want cozier. On kitchen cabinets it reads as a warm mushroom greige and suits a kitchen with a white counter, brass and a lighter wall. It looks muddy under cool LED strips. In a bathroom it wants daylight and warm tile; with gray tile and no window it turns dull. Skip it for a dark hallway, where Accessible Beige is the safer pick.

Shiitake on an exterior

Shiitake is sold for exterior use and works as a soft beige body color on siding and stucco. Full sun lifts it toward a light sand and takes the mushroom cast out. The shaded side keeps a deeper, grayer beige, so the house shows two versions of the color. It pairs with a warm white trim. Sherwin-Williams' own accents for it, Urban Jungle SW 9117 and Dark Clove SW 9183, work on shutters and doors, as does Urbane Bronze SW 7048.

Try Shiitake on your own walls

Upload a photo of your room, or the outside of your house, and TryMyHome renders Shiitake 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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Shiitake vs Accessible Beige, Bungalow Beige and Balanced Beige

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Accessible Beige SW 7036, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

Shiitake vs Accessible Beige SW 7036

Shiitake is noticeably darker; both have a noticeable yellow-beige undertone.

Accessible Beige SW 7036 is a step lighter than Shiitake, an LRV of 58 against 51, and by our measurement slightly less colorful. It reads as a light sandy beige where Shiitake reads as a mushroom tan. In one room they look like near twins with Shiitake a shade deeper. Pick Accessible Beige for hallways, small rooms and whole-house walls. Pick Shiitake for a bedroom or living room that should feel warmer and more enclosed, or where Accessible Beige looked too pale.

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Bungalow Beige SW 7511, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

Shiitake vs Bungalow Beige SW 7511

Shiitake is a touch darker; undertone noticeable yellow-beige vs noticeable orange.

Bungalow Beige SW 7511 is a touch lighter and carries more red, so the two part on undertone rather than depth. Beside each other Bungalow Beige looks pink and Shiitake looks khaki. Bungalow Beige is the one for a room with pink-beige tile, brick or a red-brown floor. Shiitake is the one for gray tile, white oak and black hardware, where a pink cast would show.

Living room walls rendered in Sherwin-Williams Balanced Beige SW 7037, white trim, ceiling and wood floor unchanged

Shiitake vs Balanced Beige SW 7037

Shiitake is noticeably lighter; undertone noticeable yellow-beige vs noticeable orange.

Balanced Beige SW 7037 is a step darker than Shiitake and leans orange rather than yellow. On a wall Balanced Beige is a rosy tan with some weight to it; Shiitake is lighter and grayer, closer to a greige. Choose Balanced Beige for a big bright living room or an exterior that needs a real tan. Choose Shiitake for a bedroom, a smaller room, or anywhere the walls should sit back.

Questions about Shiitake

What colors go with Shiitake?

For trim and ceilings, Sherwin-Williams' own pairing is Aesthetic White SW 7035. Its named accents are Urban Jungle SW 9117, a deeper khaki, and Dark Clove SW 9183, a dark brown. In practice it sits well with white oak, walnut, black metal, olive green, navy and cream. Brass hardware suits it better than chrome, which brings out the gray.

Is Shiitake a good bedroom color?

Yes, and it is the room people use it in most. It is deep enough to feel restful and warm without going dark, and it takes white or linen bedding well. Mind the window direction. A north bedroom in Shiitake reads mushroom-gray and smaller, while an east or south one stays a soft beige.

Is Shiitake good for kitchen cabinets?

Yes. On cabinets it reads as a warm mushroom greige, darker than it looks on a wall because cabinet faces sit in shadow under the counter. It works with a white quartz counter, brass or black pulls and a lighter wall such as Aesthetic White SW 7035. Under cool LED strip lights it goes muddy, so use warm bulbs.

Does Shiitake look gray or green?

It looks grayer than Accessible Beige SW 7036 because it is darker, not because it has gray in it; measured, it holds a little more color. There is no green in it either, but beside a pink-beige carpet or tile it can read khaki. Against gray tile, white trim or black metal it reads plainly warm.

What is one shade darker than Shiitake?

Loggia SW 7506 is the next color down its fan-deck strip, a touch darker with the same warm lean, close enough to be a near twin. Shiitake is the lightest color on that strip, so there is no lighter step there. By measurement the nearest colors are Minimalist SW 9611, which is nearly identical, and Sandbar SW 7547, a touch lighter.

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