NORTH Melbourne has suffered its first loss in three seasons, while another AFLW side has barely broken a sweat so far into the 2026 season.
With round six in the books, we've taken a look at how each team is tracking mid-way through the season. The formula is simple: Who do we think is the most in-form team, taking into account how the relative strength of the teams they've played against?
Due to there only being 12 rounds but 18 clubs in the AFLW competition, not every team plays each other over the course of the home and away season. While teams are sorted into bands of relative strength to ensure fairness in fixturing, this is obviously based upon last season's performances and doesn't take into account improving or worsening teams.
The ladder, for all the good that it does, doesn’t quite grasp of the nuance of an AFLW season, with weighted draws, close games and teams that have gone above or below expectations to account for.
So, AFL.com.au's AFLW experts have knocked their heads together to come up with a ranking of all 18 AFLW sides, in order from strongest to weakest.
1. Melbourne
Undefeated in 2026 so far, Melbourne is the best team in the competition, playing a brand of football that looks cohesive, fun, and dare we say, easy. Facing four of last year’s top eight already, and with an average winning margin of 40.8 points this year, Melbourne’s well-built list has shone as each player has played their role. With the reintroduction of Olivia Purcell off an injury, their midfield is one of the strongest in the competition with Tyla Hanks and Kate Hore alongside her. Not once losing a fourth quarter in all of 2026, and with the forward line duo of Tayla Harris and Mia Austin, Melbourne is on track to being flag favourites come November.
2. North Melbourne
Despite the Roos' dominant season in 2026 where they were truly only challenged in the preliminary final against Melbourne, they’ve seemed slightly below their almost immaculate standards this year. Whilst they pushed through the pressure against Carlton and narrowly scraped in with the win by 10 points, they finally came undone against the Hawks, ending their 32-game win streak in the process. Unable to match the pressure of the Hawks in the humid Cairns air, the Roos final quarter showed a plethora of missed tackles, inaccurate kicks and uncharacteristic slow ball movement. In fairness, one loss does not a season make, and with the highest percentage in the league at 255.99, they’re still well above the rest of the pack. They’re just not number one anymore.
3. Carlton
The Blues may be sitting sixth on the ladder, but that doesn’t seem overly fair given the tough fixture they’ve had so far. The plucky youngsters were at one point undefeated this year, up there with reigning premier North Melbourne and the incredibly in-form Melbourne. But facing both of those sides back-to-back, the young navy Blues have been tested in the last few weeks and have slipped down the ladder. However, forecasting ahead, the Blues could easily win every game on their run home with their biggest challenge likely Hawthorn in round eight. With potentially just the one more loss left in them for the rest of the home and away season, they shouldn’t be written off from top four prospects just yet.
4. Geelong
The Cats have become one of the highest-scoring teams in the league, just a solitary point behind Melbourne in their cumulative points tally for the season. The triple-threat forward combination of Aishling Moloney, Jackie Parry and Chloe Scheer is paying dividends and proving very difficult to completely shut out of the contest, while Georgie Prespakis, Nina Morrison and Mikayla Bowen are in career-best form through the middle. Geelong was completely obliterated by North Melbourne in round one, but given that was their first game under new coach Mick Stinear, give them some grace. Since then, they have not put a foot wrong, including an impressive 11-point win on the road against Adelaide
5. Hawthorn
If this were a week ago, Hawthorn may have been far further down the power rankings list, potentially somewhere on par with their bottom of the eight position they’re in now. But then the unthinkable happened when they took down the juggernaut that is North Melbourne in a high-pressure, gutsy game at their second home in Cairns. Doing it without their skipper Emily Bates, midfielder Jas Fleming stepped up to ensure her team got across the line. With Áine McDonagh leading the league for goalkicking, and Jenna Richardson for marks there’s plenty of promise all around for them to remain a top-eight finisher in 2026. However, with a 28-point loss to Adelaide that they probably should have won, the Hawks aren’t quite yet in top four status just yet.
6. Gold Coast
The surprise packet of the 2026 season, the Suns have levelled up in ways that were completely unexpected, slotting them appropriately in at number six. Whilst they’ve had, and will continue to have, one of the easiest draws after finishing last in 2025, the fact they’re sitting in the eight after six games is worth all the commendation. Bringing in 10 debutants in round one should have meant the Suns would need a few games to find their identity, but after their round one loss in the pouring rain to the Western Bulldogs, the Suns have maintained composure in every game since then, currently sitting 4-2 with the third highest percentage in the competition at 139.2. Add the exciting injections of first-years Ava Usher, Sunny Lappin and Alannah Welsh, plus veteran Anne Hatchard into the side, the new brand of football from the Suns is box office.
7. Western Bulldogs
One of the steady improvers in 2026, the Bulldogs recorded their best win for the year over the weekend with a gutsy 10-point win over Fremantle on the Dockers' home deck. The Dogs are gradually adding additional layers to their game, and while they've had an up-and-down season so far, have clearly taken some steps forward this year. Emma McDonald has shown some promising signs in attack, Isabelle Pritchard has won a few games for the team, and Jess Fitzgerald has become a far more consistent player. The Dogs have done this without skipper De Berry and former captain Ellie Blackburn, who missed most of the first half of the season with injury.
8. Sydney
The Swans were looking for improvement after a disappointing 2025 campaign, and under new coach Colin O’Riordan they have done just that. Currently sitting 5-1, the Swans have snuck into the top four on the ladder, with Chloe Molloy, Zippy Fish and Laura Gardiner all in fine form. However, with inconsistent scoring this year, from 87 points one week to 33 points another, a question mark is still to be had at the consistency of the group. Still to face North Melbourne and Carlton on their run home, they will likely fall to the bottom half of the top eight by the season's end but have vastly improved overall.
9. Richmond
It’s amazing what an off-season review and nailing your draft selection will do. In 2025, Richmond was sitting in the bottom three with just two wins, but in 2026 under new coach Jarrad Donders they’re looking refreshed and for the first time in a long time, competitive. Picking up Olivia Wolmarans as their number one pick is arguably one of the best draft decisions of the last few years, with the key forward slotting in and playing footy like she’s been an AFLW key forward her whole life. Adding co-captain Gabby Seymour into the forward line and veteran Katie Brennan to play the mid-forward bridge has been inspired, leading the Tigers to play dynamic style of footy, notching up four wins in the process.
10. Adelaide
It's been somewhat of a rollercoaster season for new coach Ryan Davis so far, with the Crows dropping matches to Sydney, Carlton and Geelong, but proving too good for Hawthorn at Dingley and Brisbane at the Lions' home base. It's taken a little while for Adelaide to find its groove without Chelsea Randall, Danielle Paredes (née Ponter) and Zoe Prowse, with Eloise Jones shifted from the forward line to defence. The Crows have been able to load games into its first-year crew, which should hold them in good stead in the next few years, and seem to be building nicely into the season. They've still got a way to go to lock in a finals spot.
11. Fremantle
One of the more confusing teams of the year, it’s not quite clear where to place Fremantle. Whilst they’re sitting 3-3, sometimes the Dockers have looked a bit off the pace and fall below the expectations put on them over the last couple of years. With one of the best rucks in the competition in Mim Strom, new recruit up forward in Eden Zanker and the reliability of Emma O’Driscoll down back they should have the spine that puts them in the top eight. Unfortunately, with a couple of injuries to key players, and far too many close margins, it’s made it an up and down year. Still to face Geelong, North Melbourne and Sydney on their run home, they’ve got their work cut out of for them for the rest of the season if they wish to compete in finals.
12. West Coast
Yes, the Eagles slipped below expectations when they began their season 0-4, but they seem to have quickly righted that ship. With their first ever win over Brisbane in club history, and a convincing performance at a hot and windy RSEA Park over the Saints, consecutive victories will no doubt galvanise Daisy Pearce’s young team over the next few weeks. Ella Roberts seems to have figured out how to work her way through a tag, and Charlotte Riggs has improved into a reliable player in the last couple of weeks. With Essendon and Fremantle over the next fortnight, the Eagles have the opportunity to truly put their poor start to the season behind them.
13. Greater Western Sydney
They’ve had a slow start to the year with just the one win but considering their scoring being higher (255) than what it was this time last year (208), they Giants have made some improvements to ensure they’re in most games. Unfortunately, the five losses are somewhat damning, but considering two of those losses were under five-points, they were one kick away from contenders for the top eight. Bec Beeson has had an outstanding year, and new recruit Tilly Lucas-Rodd has provided a fresh look through the middle. With Collingwood and Essendon over the next two weeks, they’re in with a chance to rise further up the ladder.
14. Brisbane
The Lions made a Grand Final last year, and they’re now currently sitting out of the eight with just the two wins. If that’s not a slide then what is? A stalwart of finals since the inception of AFLW, it may be about time for the Lions to sit back in November this year with their game style certainly tracking that way. Their inside 50 entries have been a sore point: With no Taylor Smith or Courtney Hodder on the end of it, it’s left Dakota Davidson to do all the work. Once the opposition find that out, it makes intercept marking easier, and the Lions have struggled to deal with the pressure.
15. Port Adelaide
The Power's inability to hit the scoreboard has been to their detriment this year: With just 190 points across six games, they’re only above St Kilda. Yes, they’ve notched up two wins but with the low-scoring games and dragging their opposition down with them in Fremantle and GWS, sitting bottom four for the power rankings seems appropriate. Matilda Scholz and Abbey Dowrick have been shining lights for the team, but with the loss of Indy Tahau to an ACL injury, Port's forward line woes may continue until the season's end.
16. Collingwood
Another tough year for the Pies so far, who are winless and anchored in the bottom three. One positive has been the clear improvement in scoring capacity, which admittedly was at a very low-level last year, but a step forward has been made. Ruby Schleicher has been very steady in front of the footy, while Bri Davey and Mattea Breed have got through the first half of the season unscathed, illness withstanding. Collingwood had seven individual goalkickers against Geelong over the weekend. If the Magpies can continue with that spread, a win will come.
17. Essendon
Unfortunately, due to the significant rise from Gold Coast, Richmond and GWS this year, the Bombers have slid down the ladder, and this power rankings list. While their off-season recruitment seemed to show promise with the likes of draftee Maggie Johnstone and former Crow Zoe Prowse, the Bombers' overall game style hasn’t provided enough space for anybody to thrive, as they currently sit winless halfway through the season. Kicking 51 points against Geelong was the closest we’ve seen in terms of scoring prowess from Essendon, but with only 10 points produced against the Gold Coast Suns at their home deck of Windy Hill in round six, clearly the Bombers aren’t quite up to scratch with pressure now building on head coach Natalie Wood.
18. St Kilda
After making their maiden finals campaign in 2025, expectations were high for the Saints to be highly competitive this year. Cut to halfway through the 2026 season, and the Saints are winless with a cumulative score of 145 points across six rounds, meaning “disappointing” doesn’t even cut it for the level of football they’ve produced this year. Whilst they’ve been unfortunately hindered by injuries once again, their inability to score, or at the very least transition the ball forward (with an average of -13.8 inside 50s to their opponent) this year has left them looking lost, and senior coach Nick Dal Santo’s position looking insecure.
