| 2013 Heartland Championship | |
| Date: | –[1] |
| Countries: |  New Zealand |
| Champion Other: | Mid Canterbury |
| Runnerup Other: | South Canterbury |
| Preceded By: | 2012 |
| Succeeded By: | 2014 |
The 2013 Heartland Championship, the eighth edition of the Heartland Championship since the 2006 reconstruction, was a rugby union competition involving the twelve amateur rugby unions in New Zealand. The tournament involved a round-robin stage in which the twelve teams played eight games each and then the top four advanced to the Meads Cup semifinals, while fifth to eighth advanced to the Lochore Cup semifinals. In both of these knockout stages the top seeds (first and fifth) played at home against the lowest seeds (fourth and eighth), the second highest seeds (second and sixth) played at home against the third highest seeds (third and seventh) and the final had the higher seed play at home against the lower seed.
The 2013 Heartland Championship was contested by the following teams:
| Team | Super Rugby partner | Hometown | Home stadium | Capacity[2] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buller | Crusaders | Westport | Victoria Square | 5,000 | |
| East Coast | Hurricanes | Ruatoria | Whakarua Park | 3,000 | |
| Horowhenua-Kapiti | Hurricanes | Levin | Levin Domain | 6,500 | |
| King Country | Chiefs | Taupō | Owen Delany Park | 20,000 | |
| Mid Canterbury | Crusaders | Ashburton | Ashburton Showgrounds | 5,000 | |
| North Otago | Highlanders | Oamaru | Whitestone Contracting Stadium | 7,000 | |
| Poverty Bay | Hurricanes | Gisborne | More FM Rugby Park | 18,000 | |
| South Canterbury | Crusaders | Timaru | Fraser Park | 12,000 | |
| Thames Valley | Chiefs | Paeroa | Paeroa Domain | 3,000 | |
| Wairarapa Bush | Hurricanes | Trust House Memorial Park | 10,000 | ||
| Wanganui | Hurricanes | Wanganui | Cooks Gardens | 15,000 | |
| West Coast | Crusaders | Rugby Park | 6,000 |
Two Heartland Championship teams – Horowhenua-Kapiti and East Coast – challenged Waikato for the Ranfurly Shield in two matches that took place in at Whakarua Park, Ruatoria and Campbell Park, Morrinsville.[1]
| Team | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 232 | 131 | +101 | 4 | 1 | 33 | ||
| 2 | North Otago | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 216 | 159 | +57 | 3 | 2 | 29 | |
| 3 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 203 | 144 | +59 | 3 | 1 | 28 | ||
| 4 | West Coast | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 190 | 173 | +17 | 4 | 0 | 28 | |
| 5 | South Canterbury | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 246 | 202 | +44 | 3 | 4 | 23 | |
| 6 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 171 | 160 | +11 | 2 | 3 | 21 | ||
| 7 | Buller | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 147 | 149 | −2 | 2 | 2 | 20 | |
| 8 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 153 | 200 | −37 | 0 | 1 | 17 | ||
| 9 | King Country | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 163 | 211 | −48 | 1 | 2 | 15 | |
| 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 173 | 225 | −52 | 3 | 2 | 13 | ||
| 11 | Horowhenua-Kapiti | 8 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 141 | 182 | −41 | 0 | 6 | 10 | |
| 12 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 141 | 240 | −99 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| Meads Cup and Heartland Championship | ||
| Lochore Cup qualification |
In the case of two teams being tied on points, the ranking of teams is decided by:
In the case of three or more teams being tied on points the ranking of teams is decided by: