Objective To review the recent progress of the small intestinal submucosa (SIS) in application research of tissue repair and reconstruction. Methods The domestic and international articles on the SIS were reviewed and summarized. Results As a natural extracellular matrix, SIS has outstanding biological advantages, such as good mechanical property, tissue compatibility, and lower immunogenicity. SIS has been used to repair and reconstruct various types of tissue defects in animal models and clinical application, especially in the treatment of hernia, urinary system disease, and refractory skin trauma. The development of the tissue engineering technology expands the field of SIS repair and reconstruction and promotes the intensive study of SIS. However, the long-term effect of SIS in tissue repair and reconstruction still remains to be further observation, while the cell/SIS material construction by tissue engineering technology also needs more studies. Conclusion SIS has a widely promising application future in the tissue repair and reconstruction.