To stably use a cooling roll for a log time by providing a soft layer which is high in heat conductivity and whose apparent Young's modulus is specified on an outer circumferential surface of the cooling roll to ensure the uniform cooling in the width direction of a metal strip.

A cooling roll 1 to be used to cool a metal strip is provided with a soft layer 3 on a circumferential surface of a roll body 2 comprising an iron core, and a cooling pipe 4 to distribute a cooling medium inside the soft layer 3. The metal strip is cooled with the cooling medium through the soft layer 3. The soft layer is preferably ≥10 W/mK in heat conductivity, 0.01-10 kg/mm2 in apparent Young's modulus, and 10-1000 times the apparent Young's modulus in thickness. The soft layer 3 is formed by containing high heat conductive fibers in a soft rubber. In the soft layer 3, when the high heat conductive fibers are arranged in a brush shape, preferably the fiber material formed of the high heat conductive fibers is arranged in an inclined manner in the circumferential direction of the cooling roll 1.