Abstract: To investigate the effect of corrosion on the compressive bearing capacity of cold-formed thin-walled steel short columns, six specimens under axial compression and six specimens under eccentric compression around strong axes were designed and processed. First, the relationship between the mechanical properties of materials and the degree of corrosion was analyzed through tensile tests. Then, the bearing capacity tests of specimens were carried out, and the failure modes and ultimate load-bearing capacity were analyzed. The results show that the yield, tensile strength, modulus of elasticity and the elongation of corroded steel decrease linearly with the increase of corrosion degree. The corrosion of steel does not change the final failure mode of the short column specimens, but with the increase of eccentricity, the local buckling of the web becomes a coupling failure mode dominated by distortion buckling. Under the same corrosion rate, the ultimate bearing capacity of axially compressed specimens degrades more obviously than that of eccentrically compressed specimens. The ABAQUS finite element software was used to simulate the specimens. The results show that the ABAQUS software can better predict the bearing capacity and buckling behavior of the specimens.