Background: Nurses’ job satisfaction is a crucial component of a safe and efficient healthcare environment.

Aim: To understand the level of job satisfaction among migrant nurses working in intensive and critical care in Saudi Arabia.

Method: This study used a quantitative descriptive design. A total of 421 migrant nurses working in intensive and critical care units in two teaching hospitals in Saudi Arabia completed a questionnaire based on the McCloskey/Mueller Satisfaction Scale.

Findings: Participating migrant nurses had moderate levels of job satisfaction overall, except for salary, holiday allowance and maternity leave, which attracted low satisfaction scores, and nursing peers, which attracted a high satisfaction score. There were no statistically significant differences in job satisfaction scores according to demographic variables except marital status, with a significantly higher job satisfaction among married respondents.

Conclusion: Promoting job satisfaction among nurses could improve the efficiency and quality of nursing care. There is a range of strategies that can be used to enhance nurses’ job satisfaction, including improving working conditions and promoting career development.