Background and Objectives: Considering the rapid growth of the aging population in the country, identifying the needs of the elderly can be a basic measure in policy making and planning to face this challenge. Because, the first step in providing services and planning for any group is knowing their conditions and understanding their needs. Therefore, the purpose of this research was to identify and acquiring the needs of the elderly.

Methods and Materials: This study is a qualitative, descriptive-analytical research conducted using a data triangulation strategy. Three sources of data were utilized: (1) a comparative review of 100 aging-focused startups across five countries (the United States, China, India, the United Kingdom, and Canada); (2) analysis of 158 relevant documents using the meta-synthesis method developed by Sandelowski and Barroso; and (3) semi-structured interviews with 12 stakeholders in the field of aging, conducted until theoretical saturation was reached. The collected data were analyzed and integrated through coding techniques.

Results: Through the analysis and synthesis of data gathered from the study and review of international aging-focused startups, internal and external documents, and interviews with stakeholders in the field of aging, 25 propositions were extracted from the open codes related to the needs of the elderly. Each proposition was categorized into 10 subcategories. Similar subcategories were then grouped and labeled, leading to the identification of five main categories representing the essential needs of older adults: health and well-being, living environment, socio-communicational needs, economic needs, and public services.

Conclusion: Considering the many and diverse needs of the elderly in different dimensions, it is necessary for the policy makers and planners of each field to anticipate the necessary measures while meeting the needs of this demographic group, and have efficient management and accountability to deal with this challenge.

Open Access Policy: This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/