Given the magnitude of the public health problem of dementia in the elderly, there is a pressing need for research, development, and timely application of biomarkers that will identify latent and prodromal illness as well as dementia. Although identification of risk factors and neuroimaging measures will remain key to these efforts, this review focuses on recent progress in the discovery, validation, and standardization of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers, small molecules and macromolecules whose CSF concentration can aid in diagnosis at different stages of disease as well as in assessment of disease progression and response to therapeutics. A multimodal approach that brings independent information from risk factor assessment, neuroimaging, and biomarkers may soon guide physicians in the early diagnosis and management of cognitive impairment in the elderly.