The exact solution for any physical model is of great importance in the applied science. Such exact solution leads to the correct physical interpretation and it is also useful in validating the approximate analytical or numerical methods. The exact solution for the peristaltic transport of a Jeffrey fluid with variable viscosity through a porous medium in an asymmetric channel has been achieved. The main advantage of such exact solution is the avoidance of any kind of restrictions on the viscosity parameter α, unlike the previous study in which the restriction α ≪ 1 has been put to achieve the requirements of the regular perturbation method. Hence, various plots have been introduced for the exact effects of the viscosity parameter, Daray’s number, porosity, amplitude ratio, Jeffrey fluid parameter, and the amplitudes of the waves on the pressure rise and the axial velocity. These exact effects have been discussed and further compared with those approximately obtained in the literature by using the regular perturbation method. The comparisons reveal that remarkable differences have been detected between the current exact results and those approximately obtained in the literature for the axial velocity profile and the pressure rise.