The method for cooling a hot strip which is obtained after a hot rolling process to the temperature range of 500° or less. Cooling water is brought into contact with the hot strip. The method includes a first cooling step and a subsequent second cooling step. Cooling is stopped at a strip temperature that is higher than a transition boiling initiation temperature in the first cooling step, and the cooling is conducted using the cooling water having a water flow rate that causes nucleate boiling in the subsequent second cooling step. Entering the temperature range of transition boiling can be completely prevented to avoid thermal instability in cooling resulting from the transition boiling, and the temperature variation of the strip after cooling is controlled to be small while the cooling end temperature can be precisely controlled.