Purpose: The purpose of the study is to investigate the cognitive function and depression of the elderly in a community setting. Method: The subjects of this study were 234 aged over 65 in Seongnam city. The data were collected from July 25th to October 27th, 2005. The measures were Korean version of Mini-Mental State Examination(MMSE-K) and Short Form of Geriatric Depression(SGDS). Collected data were analyzed using SPSS 12 version to obtain summary statistics for the descriptive analysis, t-test, ANOVA and Pearson Correlation. Results: 1. The mean score of cognitive function was 21.95±3.54. The prevalence of cognitive impairment was estimated as 73.1% by MMSE-K≤23 point. 2. The mean score of depression was 5.35±2.12. The elderly with depression was estimated as 15.4% by SGDS≥8 point. 3. The cognitive function of the subjects were significantly negative correlated with depression(-.165*, p=.012). 4. The general characteristic which affected the cognitive function scores of the elders were gender, age, and spouse. The general characteristic which affected the depression scores of the elders were gender and age. Conclusion: The findings of this study will provide practical guidelines for developing cognitive nursing interventions.