A better quality of life and the perspective of a long, productive life are factors that can contribute to maintaining the stocks of blood products. The aim of this study is to evaluate the blood donation of the elderly at a private haemotherapy service. This is a cross-sectional, descriptive investigation conducted at a private haemotherapy service in Natal/RN, Brazil, during July and September 2015 with a sample of 86 elderly individuals. All the elderly individuals donated blood to meet the needs of one patient. Most of the donors were retirees, with a high level of schooling, married and residing near the site of the donation. New blood donations were difficult to obtain, which was attributed to communication via telemarketing and personal comorbidities. The low number of elderly donors can be attributed to misinformation as to the current maximum age limit for donations, comorbidities and the communication/marketing strategy used to attract participants.