Background/Aims Assessing factors that affect job satisfaction among healthcare staff, and formulating comprehensive strategies to improve job satisfaction, is fundamental to healthcare organisations. This study aimed to develop and validate a tool to measure staff job satisfaction in emergency departments of hospitals in Jordan. Methods The job satisfaction scale was developed using a literature review, instrument validation and statistical testing using exploratory factor analysis and Cronbach's alpha. A self-administered questionnaire was sent to 200 healthcare staff working in emergency departments in hospitals in Jordan between 14 April and 5 May 2020. Results A total of 112 respondents returned a completed questionnaire. Exploratory factor analysis yielded 16 strong explanatory items that affect job satisfaction, which could be grouped into four domains: physical environment and workplace safety; supervisor support; promotion and compensation; and communication and relationships with coworkers. The tool was found to have good reliability and validity. Low to moderate levels of satisfaction were found in most domains. Conclusions The findings of this study provide evidence for the psychometric properties of a newly developed scale to measure the level of job satisfaction of healthcare staff working in emergency departments.