Northern Lights
What Northern Lights Actually Looks Like
Northern Lights 586 sits in the middle of the value range, neither a pale whisper nor a deep statement. In morning sun it opens up and reads almost airy, a clear, refreshing green with teal leanings. By evening under artificial light it settles into something richer and moodier, closer to a forest pool than a garden hedge. The color has enough saturation to hold its own on four walls without feeling oppressive, and it reads equally well on cabinetry where that cool, clean quality becomes an asset.
Northern Lights Undertones
The dominant undertone is cool green with a teal pull. That undertone is not shy about making itself known, especially in north-facing spaces where natural light already skews cool and blue-green. In a south-facing room with warm afternoon sun, the color warms up a bit and feels more balanced, but the cool green character never fully disappears. Pay close attention to your trim color and flooring, because those surfaces will reflect back into this wall color and amplify whatever undertone is already present in the room. A warm honey floor will ease the coolness slightly; a bright white trim with a blue cast will push it cooler.
Where Northern Lights Works Best
Northern Lights works in living rooms, bedrooms, kitchens, and sunrooms. In a sunroom or south-facing living room it can be genuinely uplifting without reading garish. In a bedroom it brings enough calm to feel restful. On kitchen cabinetry it gives a considered, not trendy, pop of color that holds up because the cool green reads clean rather than sweet. North-facing rooms are where you need to think twice. Northern light will enhance those cool undertones and push the color toward a deeper, more saturated teal-green read. That can be beautiful in a deliberate, moody way, but if you were hoping for something lighter and airier, a north-facing room will not deliver that.
Where to put Northern Lights
On all four walls of a living room, Northern Lights shifts visibly through the day. Morning light makes it feel open and fresh. By evening it becomes moodier and more enveloping, which works well for a space used socially after dark. Keep large upholstered pieces in warm neutrals or natural linens to balance the cool wall color.
The color's middle lightness value means it will not make a bedroom feel like a cave, but it brings enough depth to feel restful rather than stark. In a bedroom with good natural light, it reads calm and clean all day. Layer in warm-toned bedding and wood furniture to keep the space from feeling clinical.
Northern Lights is a strong choice for kitchen cabinetry. The cool green reads crisp against countertop materials like white marble or light quartz, and warm brass hardware prevents the look from going cold. On a full kitchen wall it will feel bold, so test a large sample first and check it both in daylight and under your kitchen's artificial lighting.
South-facing sunrooms are where this color performs most effortlessly. The warm, plentiful light softens the coolness just enough so the green reads vibrant rather than icy. It pairs well with natural rattan or wicker furniture and feels genuinely connected to outdoor greenery beyond the windows.
What to Pair With Northern Lights
Because no specific coordinating colors were designated for this color in our database, think in categories. Crisp off-whites and warm creams on trim give Northern Lights a grounded, finished look. Natural wood tones in flooring or furniture ease the coolness. Warm metallics like brass or aged bronze in hardware work well on cabinets painted in this color. Avoid very cool-toned whites on adjacent trim in north-facing rooms, as they will compound the cool shift and make the overall palette feel cold rather than collected.
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Colors that clash with Northern Lights
Northern light already amplifies the cool green undertone in this color. Pair it with a trim that has a blue or gray cast and the whole room can feel uncomfortably cold rather than intentionally cool.
Dark glossy floors reflect light differently than matte or wood surfaces, and that reflected light can pick up the teal component in Northern Lights and make it read more blue-green than you intended.
Under incandescent or very warm LED bulbs, the cool green in Northern Lights can look muddy or gray-green rather than clean and fresh. The color loses its clarity and the teal quality drops out.
Common questions
The Benjamin Moore color code is 586. The precise LRV is 42.71, placing it solidly in the mid-range, neither a light nor a dark color. The hex and RGB values render in the swatch above.
It can, but go in with clear expectations. North light enhances cool colors, so the already cool green undertone will become more pronounced. In a north-facing room it will read deeper and more saturated, which can be a deliberately moody and atmospheric choice. If you want it lighter and more open, a south-facing room is the better fit.
Yes. The cool green reads clean and considered on cabinetry rather than trendy or sweet. Warm hardware finishes like brass or unlacquered bronze work especially well to balance the coolness. Check it under your kitchen's artificial lighting as well as in daylight, since the color shifts noticeably between the two.
Test it against your actual trim color and flooring material, not just on a bare white wall. The adjacent surfaces will reflect back into the paint color and shift how the undertone reads in your specific space. Paint a large sample board and move it around the room at different times of day.
In morning light it opens up and reads lighter and more airy. As the day progresses and especially after dark under artificial light, it deepens and takes on a moodier, richer quality. This is a feature of its mid-range lightness value, not a flaw, but it means you should evaluate the color at multiple points in the day before deciding.