Corn Stalk (542)

Corn Stalk (542) is a mid-tone, warm paint color from Benjamin Moore (#BACDA0, LRV 56.6). See how it shifts in different light, the colors it pairs with, and its closest matches in other brands.

Corn Stalk (542) is a mid-tone, warm-toned paint color from Benjamin Moore. It holds its character through the day — steady in both daylight and lamplight. Below you'll see it in real rooms, the colors it pairs with, the finishes that suit it, and its closest matches in other brands — everything you need before you commit a wall to it.

The kind of mid-tone shade that makes a room feel considered rather than accidental — easy to live with, and hard to get wrong.

Corn Stalk at a glance

Brand: Benjamin Moore
Color code: 542
Hex: #BACDA0
RGB: 186, 205, 160
HSL: 85°, 31%, 72%
LRV (Light Reflectance Value): 56.6 — soft mid-light
Undertone: warm undertone leaning yellow-green
Color family: light, pastel, neutral, green

How it behaves in light

Corn Stalk sits in the middle of the range, so it stays fairly steady from morning to night. Watch how its warm undertone shifts between a sunny wall and a shaded one before you decide. The honest test is simple: paint a poster-board sample, move it to the wall you care about, and look at it in the morning, midday, and after dark. Undertones almost always show up more on a full wall than they do on a tiny chip.

Where it works

Corn Stalk is an easy color to build a home around. Let it carry the main living spaces and keep trim a step lighter in the same warm-or-cool family, so the room feels intentional rather than busy. It flows nicely from an entry through to bedrooms, and it gives deeper accent colors something calm to sit against in dining rooms, studies, and media spaces.

What to pair it with

For a little contrast — a front door, a single accent wall — reach for a color on the opposite side of the wheel. For a calm, flowing palette, stay with its close neighbors so rooms blend gently into one another. And the fastest way to plan trim, walls, and cabinets is to use lighter and deeper versions of Corn Stalk itself; that built-in range almost always reads as harmonious because it shares the same DNA.

How it compares across brands

No two paint lines mix a color quite the same way, so a "match" from another brand is rarely identical on the wall. We line up the closest options from Sherwin-Williams, Benjamin Moore, Behr, and others and rank them by how close they actually look — not by similar-sounding names. If you're switching an existing palette over to Benjamin Moore, that ranking is the shortcut: start from the closest match and sample from there.

Before you commit

Sample on two walls — Brush Corn Stalk on a wall that gets morning light and one that gets afternoon light before you order gallons. Color shifts more than a swatch ever suggests.
Get the trim right — Keep trim one or two steps lighter in the same warm-or-cool family. A stark blue-white only works if you actually want a crisp, gallery-clean look.
Match the finish to the room — Satin — mid-tones shine in satin — easy to clean with a gentle luster.
Order it by code — Ask for 542 at the paint counter. Names drift between fan decks, but the code keeps your touch-ups matching for years.

Corn Stalk, answered

Is Corn Stalk warm or cool?

Warm. Corn Stalk carries a gentle warm base, which keeps it from feeling stark next to wood and warm light.

What undertone does Corn Stalk have?

Green undertone — earthy and grounding, comfortable in most light. It can read creamier in low light and against cool-white fixtures — worth sampling on your own wall before you commit.

What is Corn Stalk's LRV?

56.6.

What trim goes with Corn Stalk walls?

A lighter, warm-toned off-white trim keeps a wall this deep from feeling boxed in — stay in the same warm family so the two don't fight.

Is Corn Stalk good for kitchen cabinets?

It can be — a warm color at this brightness reads soft rather than clinical on cabinetry, and pairs well with wood, brass, and stone. Sample it under your own cabinet lighting first.