Developer & creator of FacadeColorizer · Paris
Reviewed by Hugo Dumoulin, Founder of FacadeColorizer · Updated 2026-05-19
On October 9, 2025, Benjamin Moore announced Silhouette AF-655 as its 2026 Color of the Year, the headline pick from the Affinity Color Collection. Silhouette is a deep, moody, warm brown sitting in burnt umber / espresso territory, with a hex value in the #5B4E47 range and an LRV of roughly 8. Translation: it is a near-dark color that reads chocolate at midday, espresso at golden hour, and almost black on a north-facing facade in February. Silhouette is the most architectural exterior color Benjamin Moore has crowned in five years, and it is the polar opposite of 2024's soft pastel pinks.
This guide is the practical answer to one question, "What will Silhouette AF-655 actually look like on my house?" Below you will find a plain-English breakdown of the color, the four exterior architectures where it sings (Tudor, Craftsman, Modern Farmhouse, Cape Cod), the four situations where it fails, twelve verified trim color pairings with exact Benjamin Moore codes, and a step-by-step protocol to test Silhouette on a photo of your own home with our exterior paint visualizer before you commit $7,000 to $14,000 to a ladder. For full exterior pricing context, see our complete exterior house painting cost guide.
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1. What is Benjamin Moore Silhouette AF-655?
Silhouette AF-655 is a burnt-umber espresso brown released as the 95th color in the Benjamin Moore Affinity Collection. The official brand language calls it a "color that grounds, like the deepest shadow at the edge of a forest at twilight." That is marketing copy. The technical reading is more useful.
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Official name | Silhouette |
| Benjamin Moore code | AF-655 (Affinity Collection) |
| Family | Warm dark brown / burnt umber |
| Approximate hex | #5B4E47 |
| Approximate RGB | 91, 78, 71 |
| LRV (Light Reflectance Value) | ~8 (near dark) |
| Undertone | Warm red-brown, slight smoky gray pull in north light |
| Best recommended product | Aura Exterior, Regal Select Exterior |
| Closest Sherwin-Williams match | SW 7048 Urbane Bronze (cooler), SW 6076 Turkish Coffee (warmer) |
| 2026 status | Benjamin Moore Color of the Year |
Source: Benjamin Moore 2026 Color of the Year announcement (October 2025), Affinity Color Collection technical data sheet, Painting Contractors Association exterior color tracker 2025-2026.
The LRV is the number that matters most for exterior use. At ~8, Silhouette absorbs roughly 92% of visible light. That means on a south-facing facade in Phoenix or Las Vegas it can drive substrate surface temperature 30-50 F above ambient, which is exactly why this color is best specified with a heat-stable premium acrylic (Aura Exterior or Regal Select Exterior) rather than a budget tier. On a north-facing wall in Portland or Buffalo, the same low LRV turns the color almost black for most of the day. That is the central trade-off of Silhouette, it is architectural and beautiful in the right light, and forgettable in the wrong light.
2. Where Silhouette AF-655 works on the exterior
Silhouette is at its best on architectures that already use contrast as part of their visual language. Four exterior styles in particular are tailor-made for AF-655.
Tudor revival
Tudor exteriors are historically four-color compositions (stucco, timber, brick, trim). Silhouette is a near-perfect substitute for the traditional creosote-stained timber accent. Pair Silhouette on the half-timbering with a cream stucco field (Benjamin Moore White Dove OC-17 or Swiss Coffee OC-45), keep the brick natural, and add a burgundy or oxblood door. The result reads like a 1920s English country house, not a 1990s Disney pastiche. For a deeper dive on this style, see our 12 Tudor exterior paint colors guide.
Craftsman bungalow
Craftsman exteriors live on three-color compositions, dark body, mid-tone trim, accent door. Silhouette replaces the muddy "Craftsman brown" of 2008-2015 with a more architectural depth. Use it on the body siding, pair with a stone or natural-wood porch column, and trim in a putty (Benjamin Moore Shaker Beige HC-45) or warm cream (Pale Oak OC-20). On a 1910 Pasadena bungalow it reads period-correct. On a 2024 Craftsman tract house it reads custom.
Modern farmhouse
The modern farmhouse moment has been white-on-black for six years. 2026 is the year the equation flips to white-on-brown. Silhouette delivers the same architectural contrast as Tricorn Black or Wrought Iron, but with warmth that softens the look in family neighborhoods (and helps with HOA approval, since pure black bodies are rejected in roughly 40% of US HOAs). White trim (White Dove OC-17), black or matte-bronze windows, and a stained or natural-wood door complete the look.
Cape Cod with cream trim
This is the unexpected fit. A traditional Cape Cod is usually shingled in weathered gray, painted white, or finished in dove gray. Silhouette on shingle siding with a cream trim (Swiss Coffee OC-45) and a soft sage door (Saybrook Sage HC-114) turns a generic Cape into a coastal-architectural standout. Best on Cape Cods with vertical proportions (1.5 stories, dormers), avoid on squat ranch-style Capes where the dark body will visually compress the facade.
3. 12 trim color pairings for Silhouette AF-655
The single most common mistake on a Silhouette exterior is pairing it with a pure-white trim. Pure cool whites (Chantilly Lace OC-65, Decorator's White OC-149) clash with Silhouette's warm undertone and create a visual gap that reads cheap. The right trim choices are warm whites, soft creams, mushrooms, and putties that match the undertone temperature. Below are twelve tested pairings, organized from highest contrast to lowest.
| # | Trim color | BM code | LRV | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | White Dove | OC-17 | 85 | Modern farmhouse, Cape Cod |
| 2 | Swiss Coffee | OC-45 | 83 | Tudor, Craftsman |
| 3 | Pale Oak | OC-20 | 70 | Craftsman, transitional |
| 4 | Simply White | OC-117 | 91 | Modern farmhouse, high contrast |
| 5 | Manchester Tan | HC-81 | 64 | Colonial, traditional |
| 6 | Shaker Beige | HC-45 | 59 | Craftsman, putty look |
| 7 | Edgecomb Gray | HC-173 | 63 | Cape Cod, transitional |
| 8 | Revere Pewter | HC-172 | 55 | Tone-on-tone Tudor |
| 9 | Navajo White | OC-95 | 76 | Mediterranean, Spanish |
| 10 | Stone Hearth | CSP-185 | 66 | Craftsman, warm mushroom |
| 11 | Acadia White | OC-38 | 81 | Modern farmhouse, warm |
| 12 | Bone White | CC-220 | 73 | Tudor cream trim |
All trim codes verified against the Benjamin Moore 2026 fan deck. LRVs are official BM datasheet values.
Pairings #1 and #2 are the safest choices and cover roughly 70% of successful Silhouette exteriors we have rendered. Pairing #4 (Simply White) is the riskiest, it delivers the most dramatic contrast and the highest "magazine cover" look, but it also magnifies any imperfection in body siding (waviness, lap marks, repair patches). Test before you commit.
Render Silhouette + each of the 12 trim options on your own photo. Free.
4. Where Silhouette AF-655 does not work
Color of the Year hype encourages homeowners to ignore site-specific limitations. Four situations make Silhouette a poor choice no matter how beautiful it looks on a fan deck.
- North-facing primary facade with no direct sun. The same LRV ~8 that gives Silhouette its depth turns it into a flat dark blob in flat north light. If the front of your house faces north and gets no direct sun until late afternoon, you lose 60-70% of the color's character. Bump up to a mid-LRV brown like BM Bittersweet Chocolate 2114-10 (LRV 11) or move to a warmer espresso like BM Mink CC-548 (LRV 14).
- Hot Southwest (Phoenix, Tucson, Las Vegas, inland Southern California). A near-black body color on a stucco home in 110 F dry heat drives surface temps to 175-195 F. Even Aura Exterior with cool-pigment colorants is a stretch in this regime; standard formulations will chalk and fade visibly within 4-6 years on the south and west elevations. If you are set on Silhouette in the Southwest, specify Aura Exterior with the IR-reflective colorant package, and accept a 6-9 year repaint cycle versus 10-15 for a mid-LRV color. See our hot climate exterior paint guide for the science.
- Strict HOAs. Roughly 30-40% of US HOAs cap exterior body LRV at 25, which excludes Silhouette outright. Pull the architectural review committee guidelines before testing. If your HOA caps at LRV 25, drop down to BM Sparrow AF-720 (LRV 18) or BM Branchport Brown HC-72 (LRV 22).
- Small, low-pitched ranch homes. Dark body colors visually shrink a facade. On a single-story 1,200 sq ft ranch with a 4:12 pitched roof, Silhouette will make the home look compressed and squat. Reserve Silhouette for facades with strong vertical proportions (1.5 to 2.5 stories, 6:12 or steeper pitch).
5. How to test Silhouette AF-655 on your house (step-by-step)
A $35 fan deck cannot tell you how Silhouette will look on your siding, in your light, in your climate. Two methods work, the traditional paint-sample-on-foamboard test, and the AI photo render test. Use both for high-stakes decisions.
Method A, the AI photo render (15 minutes, free)
- Take one front-elevation photo of your house on an overcast day around 10 AM or 2 PM. Avoid harsh midday sun (blows out the highlights) and golden hour (warms everything artificially).
- Upload the photo to FacadeColorizer's free AI exterior visualizer. No signup required.
- Enter Silhouette as a custom hex value (~#5B4E47) or pick from the Benjamin Moore palette in the color picker.
- Generate three trim variants using White Dove (OC-17), Swiss Coffee (OC-45), and Pale Oak (OC-20). The free tier includes one HD render plus three watermarked previews.
- Compare side by side at different screen brightnesses. Look at the renders on your phone outdoors in actual daylight, not just on a calibrated desktop monitor.
Method B, the physical sample board (3 days, ~$30)
- Buy a Benjamin Moore Color Sample pint of Silhouette AF-655 (~$10) and a 24" x 36" piece of primed white foamboard (~$10).
- Roll two coats of Silhouette on the foamboard. Wait 24 hours between coats.
- Tape the foamboard to the actual elevation you plan to paint, at the height where most of the wall will be (roughly 5 feet up).
- Observe the color at three times, 9 AM (cool morning light), 1 PM (full sun), 6 PM (warm golden hour). Take a photo each time.
- Compare the three photos. If the color reads correctly at all three times, proceed. If one of the three reads wrong (too black, too red, too gray), test a sister color like BM Bittersweet Chocolate 2114-10 or BM Branchport Brown HC-72 before committing to the full repaint.
For a deeper walkthrough of the AI render workflow, see our Benjamin Moore color visualizer page.
6. Silhouette AF-655 versus SW Urbane Bronze SW 7048
Sherwin-Williams Urbane Bronze SW 7048 was the 2021 Color of the Year and remains the most-specified dark exterior color in Sherwin's catalog. It is the natural cross-shop for Silhouette, and our test 5 paint brands on the same house photo experiment renders both side by side. They are not the same color, and the difference matters.
| Factor | BM Silhouette AF-655 | SW Urbane Bronze SW 7048 |
|---|---|---|
| Family | Warm burnt umber / espresso | Cool gray-brown / olive bronze |
| Undertone | Red-brown, slight smoky pull | Green-gray, slight olive pull |
| Approximate hex | #5B4E47 | #54534B |
| LRV | ~8 | 8 |
| Best in | Warm-light regions (Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, Southeast) | Cool-light regions (Pacific Northwest, Mountain West) |
| Best architecture | Tudor, Craftsman, Cape Cod | Modern, Mid-Century, Modern Farmhouse |
| Year introduced as COY | 2026 | 2021 |
| Pairs with warm cream trim | Excellent (natural) | Risky (creates muddy contrast) |
| Pairs with cool white trim | Risky (creates color gap) | Excellent (natural) |
The short answer: pick Silhouette if your home has any natural wood, brick, or stone in the composition, the warmth ties everything together. Pick Urbane Bronze if your home is a clean modern envelope with metal, concrete, or pure white in the composition, the cool undertone keeps the palette architectural. They are not interchangeable.
Render both colors on your own facade photo. Side-by-side, free, no signup.
7. Frequently asked questions about Silhouette AF-655
Is Silhouette AF-655 too dark for an exterior?
For most facades, no. Silhouette sits at LRV ~8, which is comparable to other widely-used dark exterior colors like Sherwin-Williams Tricorn Black (LRV 3), Benjamin Moore Wrought Iron 2124-10 (LRV 6), and SW Urbane Bronze (LRV 8). It is darker than the average mid-tone but lighter and warmer than a true black. The two situations where it becomes "too dark" are north-facing primary facades with no direct sun, and small single-story ranch homes where the dark body visually compresses the elevation.
Will Silhouette fade quickly on a south-facing wall?
It depends on the paint product. With Benjamin Moore Aura Exterior or Regal Select Exterior plus the cool-pigment IR-reflective colorant package, expect 10-12 years on a south-facing wall in moderate climates (Mid-Atlantic, Midwest, Pacific Northwest) and 6-9 years in hot regions (Phoenix, Vegas, inland SoCal). With a budget-tier paint like Benjamin Moore Ben, expect 5-7 years before visible chalking on the south elevation. Silhouette is a paint product decision as much as a color decision.
What is the LRV of Silhouette AF-655?
Approximately 8, per the Benjamin Moore Affinity Collection technical data sheet. That puts it in the "near dark" range. For HOA compliance purposes, treat it as a "dark" color, many HOA exterior color guidelines cap body LRV at 20-25 and Silhouette will not meet those limits.
Can I get Silhouette in a Sherwin-Williams product?
Yes, any Sherwin-Williams store will color-match Silhouette to SW Duration or Emerald in under 10 minutes using a spectrophotometer. Match accuracy is typically 95-97% on first read. For a deep burnt-umber tone like Silhouette, expect a slight cooling shift in the SW match because the Gennex colorants Benjamin Moore uses for warm browns do not translate perfectly to Sherwin's CCE tint system. If color fidelity is critical, stay in the Benjamin Moore product line.
What trim color is best with Silhouette AF-655?
White Dove OC-17 is the single most-specified pairing and works on roughly 70% of facades. Swiss Coffee OC-45 is the second choice and slightly warmer, better for Tudor and Craftsman. Avoid pure cool whites like Chantilly Lace OC-65 or Decorator's White OC-149, the cool undertone of those whites clashes with Silhouette's warm red-brown undertone and creates a visual gap that reads cheap. For a warmer alternative white pairing approach, see our SW Alabaster north-facing undertones guide.
Does Silhouette work with a brick or stone facade?
Yes, and it is one of the strongest applications. Silhouette ties to red-brick undertones naturally and pulls the warmth out of buff or limestone facades. The classic combination is Silhouette on the painted siding, natural red brick on the lower facade, cream trim (Swiss Coffee OC-45), and a black or matte-bronze door. This is the look that defines premium 2026 Tudor and Craftsman renovations.
How does Silhouette AF-655 compare to BM Bittersweet Chocolate 2114-10?
Bittersweet Chocolate (LRV 11) is a half-step lighter and noticeably warmer (more red, less smoky) than Silhouette (LRV 8). On a north-facing facade Bittersweet Chocolate retains more visible color depth and reads as "espresso brown" rather than "near black." If you want the Silhouette look on a facade that gets limited direct sun, Bittersweet Chocolate is the better practical pick, especially when paired with Swiss Coffee OC-45 trim.
Test Silhouette AF-655 on your home photo. 1 HD render + 3 trim variations, no signup.
Bottom line. Silhouette AF-655 is the most architectural Color of the Year Benjamin Moore has named in five years, and it deserves the attention. It is also a near-dark exterior at LRV ~8, which means site and light matter more than fan-deck enthusiasm. Test on a real photo of your own facade, in your own light, with at least three trim variants, before you commit to the ladder. Sources: Benjamin Moore 2026 Color of the Year announcement (October 2025), Benjamin Moore Affinity Collection technical data sheet, Painting Contractors Association exterior color tracker 2025-2026, American Coatings Association climate-specific repaint data.
Trademark notice. Benjamin Moore®, Silhouette®, Affinity®, Aura®, and Regal® Select are trademarks of Benjamin Moore & Co. FacadeColorizer is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Benjamin Moore & Co. References to Benjamin Moore product names and color codes are made for descriptive and editorial purposes only, consistent with nominative fair use under the Lanham Act. All other brand names mentioned (Sherwin-Williams, Behr, Valspar, PPG) are the property of their respective owners. Color hex and RGB values are approximate digital renderings, the only authoritative color reference is a physical Benjamin Moore Color Sample applied per the manufacturer instructions.
