Galvanized steel is a hot-dipped coated metal that provides customers with better resistance to corrosive environments.

 To create galvanized steel, cold rolled steel is submerged into a molten zinc bath, known as the hot-dip process (galvanization can also be achieved through continuous galvanizing). When the material is removed from the zinc bath and cooled a reaction to the oxygen in the air occurs. The reaction causes the zinc coating to become part of the steel creating the well-recognized spangled finish.

Galvannealed steel is created by a hot-dip coating process. The process produces a uniform zinc coating on both sides of the product. Immediately after the hot-dip process, the metal is exposed to a heat treatment that allows the iron from the base metal to further diffuse into the zinc, creating a zinc-iron alloy layer.

This results in the non-spangled finish, unlike galvanized steel. The matte finish makes the material suitable for painting.