| Pos | Team | Pld | Pts | GD | W | D | L | F | A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reading | 46 | 94 | +16 | 29 | 7 | 10 | 67 | 51 |
| 2 | Plymouth Argyle | 46 | 87 | +35 | 26 | 9 | 11 | 88 | 53 |
| 3 | Derby County | 46 | 84 | +39 | 23 | 15 | 8 | 80 | 41 |
| 4 | Wigan Athletic | 46 | 83 | +34 | 23 | 14 | 9 | 82 | 48 |
| 5 | Gillingham | 46 | 79 | +27 | 22 | 13 | 11 | 81 | 54 |
| 6 | Walsall | 46 | 75 | +26 | 22 | 9 | 15 | 90 | 64 |
| 7 | 46 | 71 | +19 | 20 | 11 | 15 | 77 | 58 | |
| 8 | Notts. County | 46 | 71 | +11 | 19 | 14 | 13 | 71 | 60 |
| 9 | Bristol City | 46 | 68 | +9 | 18 | 14 | 14 | 69 | 60 |
| 10 | Brentford | 46 | 66 | -3 | 18 | 12 | 16 | 58 | 61 |
| 11 | Doncaster Rovers | 46 | 64 | -7 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 45 | 52 |
| 12 | Blackpool | 46 | 63 | +11 | 17 | 12 | 17 | 66 | 55 |
| 13 | 46 | 58 | -17 | 15 | 13 | 18 | 61 | 78 | |
| 14 | Rotherham United | 46 | 57 | +2 | 15 | 12 | 19 | 61 | 59 |
| 15 | AFC Bournemouth | 46 | 54 | -7 | 15 | 9 | 22 | 65 | 72 |
| 16 | Bristol Rovers | 46 | 54 | -24 | 14 | 12 | 20 | 51 | 75 |
| 17 | 46 | 53 | -3 | 13 | 14 | 19 | 61 | 64 | |
| 18 | Bolton Wanderers | 46 | 53 | -14 | 15 | 8 | 23 | 54 | 68 |
| 19 | Newport County | 46 | 51 | -13 | 11 | 18 | 17 | 52 | 65 |
| 20 | 46 | 49 | -4 | 12 | 13 | 21 | 63 | 67 | |
| 21 | Lincoln City | 46 | 46 | -22 | 10 | 16 | 20 | 55 | 77 |
| 22 | Cardiff City | 46 | 45 | -30 | 12 | 9 | 25 | 53 | 83 |
| 23 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 46 | 43 | -41 | 11 | 10 | 25 | 57 | 98 |
| 24 | Swansea City | 46 | 43 | -44 | 11 | 10 | 25 | 43 | 87 |
Content retrieved from: http://stats.football.co.uk/league_tables/1985_1986/league_one/index.shtml.
