Through a study of teacher job satisfaction in impoverished rural areas in northwest China, the authors examine the factors leading to satisfaction among teachers serving poor rural communities. A survey of rural primary school teachers, principals, and village leaders conducted in the year 2000 in Gansu is analyzed. In this article, the authors test whether younger and better-educated teachers have lower levels of satisfaction. In addition, the authors hypothesize that female teachers, married teachers, teachers who are more highly ranked, and those who are more socially similar to their surrounding communities are more satisfied. To test these hypotheses, the authors consider teacher age, gender, marital status, level of education, rank, place of origin, and whether or not the teacher is also a farmer. This article is a first attempt at understanding the job satisfaction of primary school teachers in rural China, and there is a need for much further research. Most valuable will be follow-up interviews with satisfied teachers in remote rural areas as well as with teachers who left teaching for other jobs.