| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Werder Bremen | 30 | 15 | 11 | 4 | 54 | 29 | 1.862 | 41 | Qualification to |
| 2 | 1. FC Köln | 30 | 14 | 10 | 6 | 66 | 45 | 1.467 | 38 | |
| 3 | Borussia Dortmund | 30 | 15 | 6 | 9 | 67 | 48 | 1.396 | 36 | |
| 4 | 1860 Munich | 30 | 14 | 7 | 9 | 70 | 50 | 1.400 | 35 | |
| 5 | Hannover 96 | 30 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 48 | 42 | 1.143 | 33 | Qualification to |
| 6 | 1. FC Nürnberg | 30 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 44 | 38 | 1.158 | 32 | |
| 7 | Meidericher SV | 30 | 12 | 8 | 10 | 46 | 48 | 0.958 | 32 | |
| 8 | Eintracht Frankfurt | 30 | 11 | 7 | 12 | 50 | 58 | 0.862 | 29 | |
| 9 | Eintracht Braunschweig | 30 | 10 | 8 | 12 | 42 | 47 | 0.894 | 28 | |
| 10 | Borussia Neunkirchen | 30 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 44 | 48 | 0.917 | 27 | |
| 11 | Hamburger SV | 30 | 11 | 5 | 14 | 46 | 56 | 0.821 | 27 | |
| 12 | VfB Stuttgart | 30 | 9 | 8 | 13 | 46 | 50 | 0.920 | 26 | |
| 13 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern | 30 | 11 | 3 | 16 | 41 | 53 | 0.774 | 25 | |
| 14 | Hertha BSC | 30 | 7 | 11 | 12 | 40 | 62 | 0.645 | 25 | Relegation to Regionalliga[a] |
| 15 | Karlsruher SC[b] | 30 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 47 | 62 | 0.758 | 24 | |
| 16 | Schalke 04[b] | 30 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 45 | 60 | 0.750 | 22 |
- ^ Hertha BSC had their license revoked due to financial irregularities and were relegated.
- ^ a b Karlsruher SC and Schalke 04, the bottom two teams in the standings, initially were relegated at the end of the season. However, after Hertha BSC had their license revoked and were relegated, both clubs raised objections to their relegation as there was no clear rule for such situation. The DFB ultimately decided to expand the league to 18 teams, therefore sparing both teams relegation.