Sadio Mane celebrates with manager Ronald Koeman after scoring the winner for Southampton
Stoke offered more resistance than Sunderland did in the previous game, and another eight-goal romp never really looked on, even though the winning margin should have been much bigger.
Stoke were more competitive in the second period, but rarely looked capable of hauling back the deficit.
Following Manchester City's lunchtime defeat at WestHam, Saints began the game knowing a win or a draw would be sufficient to put the in second place in the table behind Chelsea.
But in this type of form, settling for just a point was never in their thoughts, and the woodwork saved the visitors three times.
Saints boss Ronald Koeman kept faith with the side that thumped Sunderland 8-0, with the exception of Shane Long, who was relegated to the subs' bench to make way for Mane.
Stoke manager Mark Hughes included Jonathan Walters and Geoff Cameron in his starting line-up after both came on as game-changing subs in the victory over Swansea in their previous game.
Keeper Asmir Begovic was also back at the ground where he scored his distance record-breaking goal against Saints from 91.9 metres!
But Begovic was lucky not to be picking the ball out of his own net inside four minutes.
Saints win great - Koeman [AMBIENT]
Mane jinked in from the left and delivered a low inswinging cross that Graziano Pelle just managed to get a touch on as he slid in at the far post, only to guide the ball fractionally wide.
But Stoke were always looking for the smart counter-attack, and former Saints Peter Crouch should have done much better than loop a tame header well over before Victor Moses was equally weak with an angled shot after doing all the hard work.
Building with precision and patience, it seemed only a matter of time before the Saints pressure would be rewarded, especially after Begovic somehow denied the impressive Tadic, and then Morgan Schneiderlin cracked in a shot that skimmed off the top of the bar.
The home side's patience finally paid off as they deservedly took a 33rd minute lead. Tadic's free kick caused chaos in theStoke defence; Pelle swivelled to rattle a post, and the alert Mane seized on the rebound to hammer a super shot into the top corner.
Bizarrely, Stoke defender Ryan Shawcross then picked up a needless booking for deciding to change his boots on the pitch.
Referee Jon Moss waved him beyond the touchline to complete the switch before producing the first yellow of the game.
The woodwork again saved Stoke from falling further behind four minutes into the second period, with Tadic again the provider, and Pelle's header bouncing down off the underside of the bar.
19-10-14 STOKE v SWANSEA - HUGHES
Stoke sensed, and not before time, they needed to be more adventurous if they were to find a way back, and manager Hughes introduced Mame Diouf for Charlie Adam.
But with the meanest defence in the Premier League to penetrate, they rarely looked capable of seriously testing home keeper Fraser Forster.
The overlapping Nathaniel Clyne and Ryan Bertrand added further attacking options for Saints, even though Stoke finally began to gain a decent share of possession, albeit in far from dangerous areas.
And they might have fallen further behind on 66 minutes when Tadic twisted and turned in the box, only to screw his shot wide weakly wide.
Stoke penalty appeals went unrewarded after Diouf fell under a Clyne challenge in the 75th minute, but it would have been extremely harsh in Mr Moss has pointed to the spot.
The visitors were still rueing that decision when Pelle rose above their defence to head Tadic's cross wide, with the goal looming large less than six yards away.
Southampton (4-2-3-1): Forster, Clyne Fonte, Alderweireld, Bertrand, Cork (Wanyama 62), Schneiderlin, Tadic, S Davis (Gardos 89), Mane, Pelle.
Man of the Match: Dusan Tadic. The Serbian was a constant threat to Stoke's defence, showing exquisite touches and setting up a string of scoring opportunities.
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