| SEASON | NPL | ISTHMIAN | SOUTHERN |
|---|---|---|---|
| 86/87 | MACCLESFIELD TOWN | WYCOMBE WANDERERS | FISHER ATHLETIC |
| 87/88 | CHORLEY | YEOVIL TOWN | AYLESBURY UNITED |
| 88/89 | BARROW | LEYTONSTONE/ILFORD | MERTHYR TYDFIL |
| 89/90 | COLNE DYNAMOES* (GATESHEAD) | SUTTON UNITED | DOVER ATHLETIC |
| 90/91 | WITTON ALBION | REDBRIDGE FOREST | FARNBOROUGH |
| 91/92 | STALYBRIDGE CELTIC | WOKING | BROMSGROVE ROVERS |
| 92/93 | SOUTHPORT | CHESHAM UNITED* | DOVER ATHLETIC |
| 93/94 | MARINE* | STEVENAGE BOROUGH | FARNBOROUGH TOWN |
| 94/95 | MARINE (MORECAMBE) | ENFIELD FC* (SLOUGH TOWN) | HEDNESFORD TOWN |
| 95/96 | BAMBER BRIDGE* | HAYES | RUSHDEN & DIAMONDS |
| 96/97 | LEEK TOWN | YEOVIL TOWN | GRESLEY ROVERS* (CHELTENHAM TOWN) |
| 97/98 | BARROW | KINGSTONIAN | FOREST GREEN ROVERS |
| 98/99 | ALTRINCHAM | SUTTON UNITED | NUNEATON BOROUGH |
| 99/00 | LEIGH RMI | DAG & RED | BOSTON UNITED |
| 00/01 | STALYBRIDGE CELTIC | FARNBOROUGH TOWN | MARGATE |
| 01/02 | BURTON ALBION | GRAVESEND & N | KETTERING TOWN |
| 02/03 | ACCRINGTON STANLEY | ALDERSHOT TOWN | TAMWORTH |
| 03/04 | HUCKNALL TOWN | CANVEY ISLAND | CRAWLEY TOWN |
| **** | ****************** | ****************** | ******************** |
| 04/05 | HYDE UNITED Workington | YEADING Eastleigh | HISTON Hednesford Town |
| 05/06 | BLYTH SPARTANS Farsley Celtic | BRAINTREE TOWN Fisher Athletic | SALISBURY CITY Bedford Town |
| 06/07 | BURSCOUGH AFC Telford United | HAMPTON & RICH Bromley | BATH CITY Maidenhead United |
| 07/08 | FLEETWOD TOWN Gateshead | CHELMSFORD CITY AFC Wimbledon | KINGS LYNN Team Bath |
| 08/09 | EASTWOOD TOWN Ilkeston Town | DOVER ATHLETIC Staines Town | CORBY TOWN Gloucester City |
| 09/10 | GUISLEY Boston United | DARTFORD Boreham Wood | FARNBOROUGH Nuneaton Town |
| 10/11 | FC HALIFAX TOWN Colwyn Bay | SUTTON UNITED Tonbridge Angels | TRURO CITY Salisbury City |
| 11/12 | CHESTER FC Bradford Park Avenue | BILLERICAY TOWN AFC Hornchurch | BRACKLEY TOWN Oxford City |
| 12/13 | NORTH FERRIBY UTD Hednesford Town | WHITEHAWK Concord Rangers | LEAMINGTON Gosport Borough |
| 13/14 | CHORLEY AFC Fylde | WEALDSTONE Lowestoft Town | HEMEL HEMPSTEAD T St Albans City |
| 14/15 | FC UTD MANCHESTER Curzon Ashton | MAIDSTONE UNITED Margate | CORBY TOWN Truro City |
| 15/16 | DARLINGTON 1883 Salford City | HAMPTON & RICH East Thurrock United | POOLE TOWN Hungerford Town |
| 16/17 | BLYTH SPARTANS Spennymoor Town | HAVANT & WATER Bognor Regis Town | CHIPPENHAM TOWN Leamington |
| 17/18 | ALTRINCHAM Ashton United | BILLERICAY TOWN Dulwich Hamlet | HEREFORD Kings Lynn Town |
KEY
RED denotes reached the football league
* denotes non promotion (teams in brackets promoted in place of non-promoted teams)
BLUE denotes reached the Vanarama National
From 04/05 the teams in CAPITALS are Champions and teams in lower-case are play-off winners.
From 04/05 the teams in CAPITALS are Champions and teams in lower-case are play-off winners.
"Which is the strongest step three league?" is a discussion many non-league football fans have up and down the country which is where the above updated table comes in which was first published on TCE in 2011. We start the table in 1986/87 when automatic promotion to the football league from non-league's top division was introduced and the three divisions were at step two in the pyramid.
Since then five clubs (Macclesfield Town, Morecambe, Burton Albion, Accrington Stanley and Fleetwood Town) have reached the football league from the Northern Premier League. Six clubs (Wycombe Wanderers, Yeovil Town, Stevenage Borough, Dagenham & Redbridge, Aldershot Town and AFC Wimbledon) from the Isthmian League and five clubs from the Southern League have reached at least League Two (Crawley Town, Boston United, Forest Green Rovers, Cheltenham Town and Rushden & Diamonds).
Since the non-league re-organisation and the creation of the Vanarama South and North divisions which shifted the divisions down to Step Three only Fleetwood Town and AFC Wimbledon have reached the football league and no teams from the Southern Premier League have done so.
Since then nine teams from the NPL and Isthmian League have been promoted to the Vanarama National compared to just five from the SPL.
Morecambe (promoted in place of Marine in 1995) and Cheltenham Town (in place of Gresley Rovers in 1997) are now both members of the football league. Marine were relegated at the end of the recent 2018/19 season after an incredible 40 year stay in the Northern Premier League's top division. Gresley Rovers liquidated at the end of the 2008/09 season and reformed as 'Gresley FC' starting at step 6 in the East Midlands Counties League - they finished bottom of the Northern Premier League First Division (East) at the end of the current season.
Since then nine teams from the NPL and Isthmian League have been promoted to the Vanarama National compared to just five from the SPL.
With Salford City, AFC Fylde and Eastleigh involved in The National League play-offs this season the Northern Premier League and Isthmian League total could go up in the next few weeks.