Toughness

• Hot rolled steel is more pliable and can be bent fairly easily. This means hot rolled steel can come in a wide variety of shapes and has many uses. Cold steel, however, is far more durable and difficult to shape. For this reason, cold rolled steel is usually used when you need something very stiff or sturdy.
  
  

Surface

• Cold rolled steel comes out with a smooth and lustrous surface. This is because the steel is treated with oil when it is processed through the rollers. The rollers act as buffing wheels and the result is very polished steel. Hot rolled steel, on the other hand, is heated for long periods of time, causing the steel to oxidize in the open air. This gives hot rolled steel a rough, blue-grey finish.
  
  

Shapes

• Hot rolled steel has a much larger variety of shapes available to it. This is because it is much easier to roll steel when it is heated, but the edges are usually rounded and inexact. Cold rolled steel, however, usually comes out in smaller, simpler and more exact shapes because it takes a very long time to roll cold steel.
  
  

Availability

• Hot rolled steel is much easier to produce than cold rolled steel. It takes less time to make and requires less precision. Because of this hot rolled steel is much cheaper and available than cold rolled steel. However, because hot rolled steel comes in very large sheets, if you only want a small amount of steel you will probably have to buy cold rolled steel.