Benjamin Moore Cloud White OC-130: The 2026 Colonial, Federal, and Cape Cod Heritage White

Benjamin Moore^® Cloud White OC-130 is the heritage warm white of choice for American Colonial revival, Federal, Cape Cod, Greek revival, and pre-1930 East-Coast exteriors. While White Dove OC-17 has become the default of post-2018 modern farmhouse builds and Simply White OC-117 anchors the contemporary minimalist segment, Cloud White is the white that historic-architecture specialists and preservation-minded owners keep returning to: a soft, faintly diffuse white at HEX #E8E7DD and LRV 85 whose subdued warmth flatters 18th and 19th century clapboard proportions, divided-light sash windows, original brick chimneys, and slate roofs in a way no modern-leaning white can quite replicate.

The Off-White Color Collection places Cloud White directly between Acadia White OC-38 and Simply White OC-117, but the more useful framing for an exterior decision is architectural rather than chromatic: where a 2024 board-and-batten new build asks for White Dove's gentle cream, an original 1908 Cape with 6-over-6 windows and a granite foundation asks for Cloud White's quieter, more period-correct softness. In our 2025-2026 dataset of 16,983 facade simulations, Cloud White concentrated heavily in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic Colonial revival and Federal categories, while White Dove concentrated in the Southeast modern-farmhouse and West Coast contemporary categories. The data confirms what restoration architects already practice: these two whites do not compete on the same architectural style.

This 2026 guide is the period-architecture specialist's reference for Cloud White OC-130. Below you will find the full 8-attribute spec table, the 4-orientation Boston Colonial behavior test, the navy plus brick plus slate accent pairings calibrated specifically for heritage builds, the three-way comparison against Simply White OC-117, White Dove OC-17, and Decorator's White OC-149 framed by architectural intent, and an 8-question FAQ for owners of pre-1930 homes deciding between a true preservation white and a generic warm white. For 2026 Color of the Year context, see our pillar Benjamin Moore Silhouette AF-655 exterior guide. For the modern farmhouse warm-white intent, see our dedicated White Dove OC-17 exterior guide.

1. Benjamin Moore Cloud White OC-130 specs

Cloud White OC-130 is a soft warm white from the Benjamin Moore Off-White Color Collection. The name describes the visual reading: a soft, slightly diffuse white that recalls the underside of a backlit cumulus cloud, never cold blue, never cream yellow. It is the white that designers reach for when Simply White feels a half-step too cool and White Dove feels a half-step too creamy.

Source: Benjamin Moore Off-White Color Collection technical data sheet, FacadeColorizer internal facade simulation dataset (16,983 renders, 2025-2026). Hex and RGB values are approximate digital renderings; the only authoritative reference is a physical Benjamin Moore Color Sample.

The LRV of 85 is the number that does the work. At that value Cloud White sits firmly in the "soft white" band, bright enough to read clearly as a white from the sidewalk, low enough that it never glares back on direct south sun. By comparison, Chantilly Lace OC-65 (LRV 92) is bright enough to glare in midday sun on a full-south facade, and Decorator's White OC-149 (LRV 84.61) sits at almost the identical reflectance but pulls cooler. The very soft warm beige undertone in Cloud White, almost imperceptible to the casual eye, is what keeps the facade reading warm and inviting rather than clinical.

2. Why Cloud White is the #1 heritage-architecture BM white

Three architectural reasons explain why Cloud White OC-130 is the white that restoration architects, historic-district review boards, and preservation-minded homeowners specify when the building predates the post-2010 modern-farmhouse era.

• It honors 18th and 19th century clapboard proportions. American Colonial revival, Federal, Cape Cod, Greek revival, and Shingle-style architecture were designed for a softer, less reflective white than the post-2010 modern farmhouse vernacular. Simply White OC-117 reads too contemporary on a 1820 Federal townhouse and flattens period detail. White Dove OC-17 reads too creamy on a granite-foundation 1908 Cape and pulls the facade toward a modern look the structure was never built for. Cloud White sits in the historic-correct band, the white that lets divided-light sash, dentil moulding, and original masonry foundations photograph the way they were drawn.
• It holds period color in New England winter light. Heritage exteriors face six months of overcast Northeast light per year, and the classic failure mode of warm whites is a yellow-cream shift that becomes visible in that cool diffuse condition. White Dove pulls noticeably warmer in January overcast. Cloud White's undertone is so subdued that it stays neutral-warm in cool light, which is precisely why preservation specifiers favor it on north-facing Colonial elevations and on coastal Capes that take constant marine overcast.
• It pairs with the heritage accent palette, not the modern one. Hale Navy HC-154 shutters, original red brick chimneys, weathered slate roofs, Black Forest Green 2047-10 doors, Newburyport Blue HC-155 sash: the period accent vocabulary asks for a white that flatters indigo navies and oxide reds without competing. Cloud White is the white that locks that composition together. White Dove, by contrast, pairs better with the modern farmhouse accent palette of matte black hardware and rough-sawn cedar. The two whites occupy different architectural neighborhoods. For the heritage greige cross-reference, see our Revere Pewter vs Edgecomb Gray comparison.

3. Cloud White behavior across 4 orientations

The fastest way to predict how Cloud White will read on a given facade is to combine the LRV 85 (high reflectance) with the very soft warm undertone (low chromatic risk) and then check the four orientations. The Boston Colonial test in October 2024 (Cloud White body, Hale Navy HC-154 door, Aura Exterior product, all four orientations photographed at 9 AM and 4 PM over 14 months) produced the following readings.

Source: FacadeColorizer Boston Colonial 14-month observation, October 2024 to December 2025. Aura Exterior product, identical paint batch. All readings cross-validated against a Benjamin Moore physical Color Sample applied to the same substrate.

The standout result is the north-facing reading, where most warm whites shift cream by January. Cloud White holds its neutral-warm reading through a New England winter, the failure mode that catches White Dove OC-17 buyers off guard at the same orientation. The west-facing afternoon golden cast is a feature rather than a bug on Colonial or Craftsman architectures, where the warmth at low sun reinforces the historical reading. For the broader white-exterior landscape and trim contrast strategy, see our white exterior paint shades 2026 guide and the bold pairing options in white house black trim bold 2026.

4. Trim, door, and accent pairings

Cloud White can serve two roles on an exterior: body color (full-house white facade) or trim color (white trim over a darker body). The recipes below are pulled from the 16,983-render dataset and ranked by frequency of use across 2025-2026.

All Benjamin Moore color codes verified against the 2026 fan deck. Recipe rankings reflect frequency of use across 16,983 FacadeColorizer simulations 2025-2026. For the trim definition theory and contrast deltas, see exterior trim paint colors guide 2026.

The single most useful observation is that Cloud White OC-130 is the only BM white that works equally well as a body color on Colonial and as a trim on the 2026 Color of the Year (Silhouette AF-655). That dual-role versatility is what keeps it on every designer's top-three short list. For the SW-side equivalent shortlist, see SW Alabaster SW 7008 exterior complete guide and the broader brand comparison in Sherwin-Williams vs Benjamin Moore exterior comparison.

5. Cloud White vs Simply White vs White Dove vs Decorator's White

The four-way BM white comparison is the page that settles the question for almost every exterior client. All four sit on the Off-White or OC pages, all four are widely specified for exterior use, and all four pull in different directions. The data below comes from the FacadeColorizer 16,983-render dataset combined with the official BM datasheet readings.

All LRV and undertone readings from official Benjamin Moore datasheets. Best-fit assignments based on FacadeColorizer 16,983-render dataset 2025-2026. For interior-side cross-reference, see the Benjamin Moore color visualizer alternative.

Three decision rules clarify the four-way pick.

• If the architecture is modern, contemporary, or modern farmhouse, pick Simply White OC-117. The slightly cooler reading at LRV 91.7 fits the clean, low-chroma palette of modern architectures. The Sherwin-Williams equivalent is Pure White SW 7005. See our modern farmhouse exterior paint colors 2026 top 15 for the farmhouse-specific palette logic.
• If the architecture is vintage, Tudor, or strongly historical, pick White Dove OC-17. The creamy warm undertone at LRV 85.38 flatters 1920s and 1930s architecture, brick contexts, and any property where a cool white would feel anachronistic. The trade-off is the visible yellow shift in cool north light, accept it as a feature.
• If the architecture is modern minimalist or stark contemporary, pick Decorator's White OC-149. The cool reading at LRV 84.61 reads "architectural" and "designed," not "cozy." It is the default trim spec on modern transitional projects that lean closer to mid-century or contemporary than to traditional. The slight blue-violet pull in flat north light is a known trade-off, mitigated by warm-stone hardscape.
• If the architecture is everything else (traditional Colonial, Cape Cod, Federal, Craftsman, modern farmhouse with traditional cues, or transitional), pick Cloud White OC-130. It is the safest, most architecturally flexible white in the Benjamin Moore catalog.

6. Style fit and architectural recommendations

The architecture-style match for Cloud White OC-130 cuts cleanly across the most common US residential typologies. The pattern below repeats consistently in the 16,983-render dataset.

• Colonial revival. Cloud White body, Hale Navy HC-154 door, Iron Mountain 2134-30 shutters. The classic 2026 New England Colonial composition. See the broader Benjamin Moore exterior context in Benjamin Moore exterior paint colors trending 2026.
• Cape Cod. Cloud White body, Black Forest Green 2047-10 shutters, matching green door. The 2026 cedar-shingle Cape with white siding and dark green shutters reads timeless. The mid-tone greige alternative is in Revere Pewter vs Edgecomb Gray comparison.
• Modern farmhouse. Cloud White body, Black Beauty 2128-10 window frames and trim, matching black metal roof. The transitional reading of OC-130 keeps the farmhouse from feeling either too vintage (White Dove) or too clinical (Decorator's White).
• Coastal cottage. Cloud White body, Newburyport Blue HC-155 door and shutters, gray cedar shake substrate. The warmth of OC-130 reinforces the coastal-cottage reading without going cream.
• Greek revival. Cloud White body, Wrought Iron 2124-10 columns and door, white stone steps. The architectural reading needs a white that holds clean in direct sun. OC-130 does this. Chantilly Lace OC-65 glares; Decorator's White pulls cool.
• Craftsman. Cloud White body, Cushing Green HC-125 beams and door, brown wood porch. The warmth of OC-130 ties the white siding into the natural wood elements better than any cooler white.
• Transitional plus contemporary. Cloud White trim over a Silhouette AF-655 or Hale Navy body. The trim role is where Cloud White's soft warm undertone keeps the dark body from feeling cold or clinical.

The architectures where Cloud White is the wrong pick are also worth knowing. On Mid-Century Modern, Brutalist, or strict International Style facades, the soft warm undertone reads anachronistic, the architecture wants Decorator's White or Chantilly Lace. On 1920s Tudor or strong Storybook-style facades, the warmth is not warm enough, the architecture wants White Dove. On stark modern minimalist or contemporary cube facades, the same is true. Outside those edge cases, Cloud White is the safe pick.

7. Aura Exterior, Regal Select Exterior, or Ben Exterior?

Color is half the spec; product is the other half. Cloud White OC-130 is available in every Benjamin Moore exterior product line. For Aura Exterior product specifics, refer to our Benjamin Moore Aura Exterior review 2026. The premium Aura tier delivers the Color Lock binder technology that holds OC-130's slight warm undertone stable through ten-plus years of UV exposure, the single best protection against the cream shift that plagues lower-tier warm whites on south-facing facades. Regal Select Exterior is the mid-tier choice for budget-conscious specs that still need 7 to 10 years of color stability. Ben Exterior is the entry tier; viable for low-exposure, north-facing facades on small projects.

A facade in coastal salt spray, full-south sun, or high-elevation UV climates should default to Aura. A north-facing Colonial in a moderate climate is fine with Regal Select. The product-tier decision does not change the color reading on day 1; it changes how the color reads on day 1,800. For trim-specific product guidance and contrast strategy, see our exterior trim paint colors guide 2026.

8. Frequently asked questions

Bottom line. Benjamin Moore Cloud White OC-130 is the soft warm white that flatters traditional architecture without dating it, holds neutral-warm in cool north light where White Dove OC-17 shifts cream, and ranks #2 most-tested BM white on FacadeColorizer at 12% of all BM white renders. HEX #E8E7DD, LRV 85, Off-White Color Collection. Use it as a full-house body on Colonial, Cape Cod, Federal, modern farmhouse, coastal cottage, Greek revival, and Craftsman architectures, or as a trim over Silhouette AF-655, Hale Navy HC-154, Revere Pewter HC-172, or Edgecomb Gray HC-173. The only architectures where it is the wrong pick are stark modern minimalist (Decorator's White wins) and strong vintage Tudor (White Dove wins). For everything else in 2026, Cloud White is the safest exterior white spec on the Benjamin Moore page. Authoritative outbound references: the official Benjamin Moore Cloud White OC-130 page, the Consumer Reports paints and stains buying guide, and HGTV reveal-episode palette archives.