Abstract: AIM: To study the prevalence of hypertension and related risk factors in the elderly population in Ningxia. METHODS: Data were analyzed in 3 706 residents (aged 60 years and over) randomly sampled by cluster sampling from 10 counties and cities. RESULTS: The prevalence rate of hypertension in the elderly population in Ningxia was 48.6%. The prevalence rate of elderly females was significantly higher than in elderly males (53.3% vs. 44.2%, P<0.01). The urban prevalence rate was significantly higher than the rural prevalence rate (52.0% vs. 44.9%, P<0.01) and hypertension was more prevalent in the Han population compared with that in the Hui population. The prevalence rate increased significantly with advancing age. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that risk factors for hypertension were high-salt diet, age, body mass index ≥24, obesity, family history, intake of fatty foods, and consuming meat ≥5 times/week. CONCLUSION: Results indicate that hypertension is lower in the Hui population than in the Han population, possibly due to different lifestyles as well as to genetic factors.