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Matthew Etherington hit a fine late winner as Stoke leapfrogged Fulham and moved into the top half of the table.The winger lit up a dull contest seven minutes from time, hammering home from 12 yards after Ricardo Fuller's cross.
Clint Dempsey went close with a volley for Fulham, who named a strong side in their last home game before the Europa League final against Atletico Madrid.
The Cottagers suffered a scare when Damien Duff was substituted at half-time with a possible calf injury.
Etherington's decisive strike was virtually Stoke's only shot on target and a solitary moment of quality in an otherwise dour affair.
However, it is the potential loss of key midfielder Duff that may cause Fulham boss Roy Hodgson greater concern ahead the European showpiece in Hamburg in seven days' time, although there was nothing to indicate that the Irishman's substitution was anything more than precautionary.
Hodgson had insisted before kick-off that the Cottagers would not be distracted by their European adventure and he named his strongest possible side, with Dempsey playing up front in the continued absence of Bobby Zamora.
Stoke's previous visit to west London had resulted in a 7-0 hammering at Chelsea 10 days ago, so it was little surprise that Tony Pulis's side appeared focused on keeping it tight in defence this time around.
The chance to finish in 10th spot beckoned for the winner - a placing that would represent Stoke's best league finish since 1975 - but both sides appeared happy to settle for a point in the early stages.
The first half was a forgettable affair that delivered just one shot on target - a 20-yard drive from Zoltan Gera that flew straight into the arms of Asmir Begovic after 39 minutes.
The Hungarian was at the heart of the rare moments of excitement in the opening period. He fired narrowly over from Duff's cross and cleverly sent Dempsey through on goal before Robert Huth made a saving challenge.
Stoke began the second half in comparatively lively fashion and their first chance of the match arrived from a familiar source when Rory Delap's long throw was nodded inches wide by Fuller.
The scare roused Fulham into something approaching urgency and they almost took the lead midway through the second half, with Gera once again in the thick of the action.
The midfielder played a sublime reverse ball to Dempsey at the far post but the American's close-range volley was brilliantly kept out by Begovic.
Dempsey, keen to secure a spot in Hodgson's cup final line-up, then had two more good efforts from distance but both failed to trouble the keeper.
The game seemed to be petering out for a draw when a moment of magic from Etherington, named this week as the Potters' player of the season, sealed victory.
Fuller burst down the right-hand side and took advantage of a slip by Paul Konchesky to send a far-post cross to Etherington, who blasted the ball into the roof of the net to put the visitors on course for their best league finish for 35 years.
Stoke27 Begovic03 Higginbotham04 Huth yellow card17 Shawcross yellow card28 Wilkinson06 Whelan18 Whitehead24 Delap26 Etherington (Diao 88)10 Fuller yellow card (Lawrence 90+5)11 Sidibe (Sanli 71)Substitutes01 Simonsen,22 Collins,07 Lawrence,14 Pugh,15 Diao,20 Sanli,42 MoultRef: WaltonAtt: 20,831STOKEPossessionFulham 53%Stoke 47%Attempts on targetFulham 6Stoke 2Attempts off targetFulham 6Stoke 3CornersFulham 8Stoke 3FoulsFulham 7Stoke 6
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