Method for pickling a metal strip running through a pickling line apparatus, that successively comprises a step of fragmenting the oxides formed at the surface of said strip during the hot rolling, an acid pickling step, a step of rinsing the strip, and a drying step, the strip being conveyed with a run speed V through said apparatus along a longitudinal run direction perpendicular to the width of the strip, the run speed V of the strip being controlled by an assembly for uncoiling and coiling, and each of the steps of the pickling being controlled by actuators that can act on adjustment parameters of the pickling line, the action or absence of action of an actuator on a given adjustment parameter being identified by a state datum, said method comprising an overall control process for the pickling, which carries out: ∘ the continuous measurement (43101, 43102) of at least some of the adjustment parameters of the pickling, said measurement being carried out during the pickling; ∘ a control phase (4201, 4202) which is carried out during the pickling, during which the overall control process defines and sends optimized control setpoints to all of the actuators using a predictive control system; and ∘ the continuous inspection (5001, 5002) of the surface of the strip; said process being characterized in that the overall control process comprises: ∘ a prior preparation phase (4101, 4102) which is carried out upstream or at the start of the pickling, during which the overall control process defines and sends pre-adjustment setpoints to all of the actuators using an analytical model, which may be associated with the predictive control system; ∘ the continuous calculation of at least some of the adjustment parameters of the pickling, said calculation being carried out during the pickling; and also characterized in that the continuous inspection (5001, 5002) of the surface of the strip defines and sends, in the event of under-pickling, an alarm setpoint to the control phase (4201, 4202), which reduces the run speed V of the strip in steps down to a corrected run speed (Vcor), the stepwise reduction of the run speed V being carried out until this defect is no longer detected and no longer triggers an alarm setpoint, characterized in that the continuous inspection (5001, 5002) of the surface of the strip also results, in the event of detecting a rinsing defect, in a stepwise modification of the pH of the rinsing water, until this defect is no longer detected. ∘ the continuous measurement (43101, 43102) of at least some of the adjustment parameters of the pickling, said measurement being carried out during the pickling; ∘ a control phase (4201, 4202) which is carried out during the pickling, during which the overall control process defines and sends optimized control setpoints to all of the actuators using a predictive control system; and ∘ the continuous inspection (5001, 5002) of the surface of the strip; ∘ a prior preparation phase (4101, 4102) which is carried out upstream or at the start of the pickling, during which the overall control process defines and sends pre-adjustment setpoints to all of the actuators using an analytical model, which may be associated with the predictive control system; ∘ the continuous calculation of at least some of the adjustment parameters of the pickling, said calculation being carried out during the pickling;