Purpose – Although many studies have been conducted in this area in many countries, there is still, a few studies on these enterprises have been done in Oman concerning the obstacles and constrains. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach – The main purpose of this paper is to throw light on the challenges and constraints faced by small and medium enterprise (SMEs) in Al Batinah Governorate of Oman and try to give some suggestions to solve problems. Findings – The data have been gathered through questionnaires from SMEs in Al Batinah Governorate in Oman. The descriptive analysis has been used to analyze the data, nonparametric testing and analysis of variance. Originality/value – After the data have been analyzed, the results show that obstacles and constrains facing SMEs in Al Batinah Governorate accordance to their importance are as follows: the investment environment come fist obstacles, capabilities of business owners come second, followed by the marketing obstacles, finance obstacles, while the legislations and regulations obstacles came last. Some of the recommendations have been presented which call for more attention and concentration on solving the obstacles facing SMES in Oman.