Objective To explore the ideal living states and expectations of the elderly residing in Chengdu city,Sichuan Province and the most favorite pension system they want.To provide a theoretical basis for our country to build a suitable pension system and improve the quality of life and happiness of the elderly.Methods Qualitative-quantitative combined methods and convenient sampling were used in this study.The qualitative data with semi-structured in-depth interviews had been obtained from the selected 40 elderly who live in Chengdu,while the quantitative data with the questionnaires were obtained from other 130 elderly.Results Family location,gender,educational background,age had impact on the expected pension system of the elderly(P＜0.05).Conclusion Different elderly have different expectation on the pension system,the current pension system should be reformed according to their expectations.