Dark Grey is a dark muted grey with a neutral cast. Matching it is straightforward: Humbrol Dark Grey lands at 90 percent in the same finish, and 8 brands in all carry a close same-finish swap. Within the Tamiya range it ladders cleanly, Dark Grey 2 for the shadows and Brown for the highlights. Bottom line: run out mid-project and another brand will get you within a shade.
Dark Grey equivalents in other ranges
3 of the 11 brands with a mapped match get genuinely close to Tamiya Dark Grey, though none is a clone. Brand by brand, the nearest colors are:
- Closest Humbrol equivalent: Humbrol Dark Grey, close enough that batch variation matters more (delta E 2.0).
- Vallejo's closest color: Vallejo Dark Blue Grey, close, with a hint of drift side by side (delta E 2.1).
- Nearest in the Citadel catalog: Citadel Eshin Grey, a near match with visible drift up close (delta E 2.4).
- Best Two Thin Coats option: Two Thin Coats Death Reaper, close, with a hint of drift side by side (delta E 2.7).
- From Revell: Revell Tank grey/Panzergrau (RAL 7024), a near match with visible drift up close (delta E 3.3).
- Scale75's closest color: Scale75 Modesty Black, close, with a hint of drift side by side (delta E 3.4).
Side by side the two agree in lightness and temperature; at delta E 2.0 the gap is smaller than the variation between two pots of the same paint.
How to read the score
90+Close
80sUsable
<70Mix
Humbrol
Vallejo
Citadel
Two Thin Coats
Revell
Scale75
AK Interactive
Us Army Helo Drab Fs 34031
Rlm 72
Dark Sea Grey
Rlm 66 (1941)
French Blue
Rlm 61
Rlm 70
Rlm 71
Rlm 81 Version 3
Dark Olive Drab 41
Nº5 Earth Brown (Fs 30099)
Monument Pro Acryl
P3 Paints
Green Stuff World
The Army Painter
About this color
Color profile
Highlight and shade ladder
Match difficulty
Where painters use it
Frequently asked
What is the closest equivalent to Tamiya Dark Grey?
The closest same-finish match is Humbrol Dark Grey at 90% color similarity.
Is there a Vallejo equivalent of Dark Grey?
Yes. The closest Vallejo option is Dark Blue Grey at 89%, a same-finish match.
What color is Dark Grey?
Dark Grey is a dark muted grey with a neutral cast (hex #484848).
What do I highlight and shade Dark Grey with?
Highlight Dark Grey toward Brown and shade it down into Dark Grey 2, both Tamiya paints in the same finish family.