After round 20
| # | Club | P | W | L | D | PF | PA | % | Pts | Last 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fremantle | 18 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 1,793 | 1,263 | 141.96 | 64 | WWLWW |
| 2 | Sydney | 18 | 13 | 5 | 0 | 1,895 | 1,477 | 128.30 | 52 | WLW |
Top six go straight to the finals; seventh to tenth play the wildcard round. Four points for a win, two for a draw; ties on points are split by percentage.
| 3 | Hawthorn | 18 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 1,772 | 1,497 | 118.37 | 50 | WWLWW |
| 4 | Brisbane | 18 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 1,916 | 1,626 | 117.84 | 48 | WWWWW |
| 5 | Adelaide | 18 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 1,642 | 1,401 | 117.20 | 48 | WLWWW |
| 6 | Melbourne | 18 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 1,758 | 1,604 | 109.60 | 48 | WLWWW |
| 7 | Western Bulldogs | 18 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 1,488 | 1,597 | 93.17 | 44 | LWLWW |
| 8 | Collingwood | 18 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 1,536 | 1,454 | 105.64 | 42 | WWWWW |
| 9 | Geelong | 18 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 1,766 | 1,520 | 116.18 | 40 | WLLLW |
| 10 | St Kilda | 18 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 1,613 | 1,551 | 104.00 | 32 | WLWWL |
| 11 | GWS | 18 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 1,621 | 1,600 | 101.31 | 32 | LLWWL |
| 12 | Carlton | 18 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 1,436 | 1,577 | 91.06 | 32 | WWWLL |
| 13 | North Melbourne | 18 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 1,507 | 1,658 | 90.89 | 32 | WWLLL |
| 14 | Gold Coast | 18 | 7 | 11 | 0 | 1,574 | 1,652 | 95.28 | 28 | LLLLL |
| 15 | Port Adelaide | 18 | 6 | 12 | 0 | 1,443 | 1,453 | 99.31 | 24 | LWWLL |
| 16 | West Coast | 18 | 4 | 14 | 0 | 1,300 | 1,802 | 72.14 | 16 | LLLLL |
| 17 | Essendon | 18 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 1,268 | 1,867 | 67.92 | 8 | LLLLW |
| 18 | Richmond | 18 | 2 | 16 | 0 | 1,176 | 1,905 | 61.73 | 8 | LLLLL |