The influence of cooling rates on the microstructure and transport properties of (Bi,Pb)-2223/Ag tapes after the first heat treatment was investigated. The samples were characterized by XRD and SEM. Results show that the 2201 phases decrease until disappear while Ca2PbO4 increases continuously as the cooling rate decreases; at the same time the size of non-superconducting secondary phase particles become larger. The transport current tests show that the critical current density increases linearly with the cooling rate decreasing logarithmically; meanwhile, the transport current properties of the tapes in the magnetic field increases. This behavior is attributed to improvement of the grain connectivity and flux pinning properties of the tapes as the cooling rate is decreased.