The 1996–97 season of the Norwegian Premier League, the highest bandy league for men in Norway.
10 games were played, with 2 points given for wins and 1 for draws. Stabæk won the league, whereas Frem-31 were relegated. Ahead of the next season, Drafn was renamed Drammen Bandy through a merger.
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | ||||||||||
| 1 | 21 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 175 | 49 | +216 | 40 | |||||||||||
| 2 | 21 | 15 | 1 | 5 | 146 | 58 | +88 | 31 | |||||||||||
| 3 | 21 | 15 | 0 | 6 | 156 | 72 | +82 | 30 | |||||||||||
| 4 | 21 | 10 | 3 | 8 | 86 | 76 | +10 | 23 | |||||||||||
| 5 | 21 | 7 | 1 | 13 | 75 | 118 | -43 | 15 | |||||||||||
| 6 | 21 | 6 | 1 | 14 | 72 | 105 | -33 | 13 | |||||||||||
| 7 | 21 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 70 | 128 | -58 | 13 | |||||||||||
| 8 | 21 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 42 | 216 | -174 | 3 |
| League champion | ||
| Relegated to the First Division |