Technical Abstract: Bermudagrass (Cynodon dactylon) is the predominate warm-season perennial grass used for cattle production in Arkansas and throughout a majority of the Southeastern U.S. Bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum), also a warm-season perennial, is grown along the Gulf Coast but not utilized extensively in Arkansas because of colder winter temperatures. Objectives were to compare forage availability and nutritive composition of a more cold-tolerant bahiagrass variety, ‘Sand Mountain’ (n = 4 pastures) or ‘Common’ bermudagrass (n = 4 pastures) grown in west-central Arkansas, and to determine performance of cross-bred steers (n = 48) with or without steroid implants grazing bahiagrass and bermudagrass pastures for 97 d. Forage availability was evaluated every 2 wk, and forage samples were collected monthly to determine nutritive composition. Forage availability during the entire grazing experiment was lower (P < 0.001) for Sand Mountain bahiagrass (1043 lb DM/acre) than Common bermudagrass (2042 lb DM/acre), and forage availability declined (P < 0.001) for each forage during the experiment. A forage x date interaction affected (P < 0.05) acid detergent fiber (ADF) and crude protein (CP) and tended (P = 0.08) to influence neutral detergent fiber. Percentages of CP were lower and ADF was higher in bahiagrass compared with bermudagrass. Forage type, steroid implant, or the interaction did not influence (P > 0.10) average daily gain (mean = 1.8 lb/d per steer) during the grazing experiment. Sand Mountain bahiagrass may be suitable as a warm-season grass in northern portions of the Southeast; however, several years of data are needed to determine the persistence of Sand Mountain bahiagrass in west-central Arkansas.