The Swans were ahead inside a minute when Andre Ayew tapped home a rebound.

Former Swans midfielder Sam Clucas levelled for the Potters midway through the first half, firing home after keeper Freddie Woodman parried Joe Allen's effort.

Stoke won it in the final moments when substitute Scott Hogan tapped home from close range.

Swansea slip to fourth while Stoke remain bottom, but close the gap on their relegation rivals.

This result, however, will feel significant for Stoke boss Nathan Jones, as his side certainly showed they have not given up on their under-fire manager.

The contest was between the sides that started the day top and bottom of the Championship but, apart from the first five minutes, you would never have known there was such a gulf between the sides.

Jones' men had not won a league game this season, but they recovered well from a nightmare start.

It took Swansea fewer than 60 seconds to race into the lead, with sheer pace proving Stoke's undoing as they were unable to counter Yan Dhanda's run into the penalty area.

Goalkeeper Adam Federici did manage to block Dhanda's shot, but the rebound fell perfectly to Ayew who simply could not miss.

The hosts were swarming over Stoke and Borja Baston's shot was blocked, as was an Ayew effort as Swansea looked to double their advantage.

However, slowly but surely Stoke improved, with Woodman tipping Lee Gregory's effort to safety as the visitors looked to push forward.

They levelled midway through the half when two ex-Swans players combined as Clucas powered home after Allen's shot was saved by Woodman.

The visitors missed two excellent chances to take the lead a minute either side of half-time.

First, Gregory found the side netting from an acute angle after Woodman saved Bruno Martins Indi's header, before Peter Etebo cracked the crossbar straight after the restart.

Swansea were increasingly wasteful in possession and might have trailed after an hour, but Gregory shot weakly at Woodman from inside the box.

The hosts were miles from the form that had propelled them to the summit of the Championship but they did create chances for a winner, but Federici tipped away Dhanda's shot and Connor Roberts failed to convert a fabulous chance after a teasing cross.

They might have snatched a late winner, but some last-gasp defending ensured Stoke held firm.

And the sting in the tail arrived with a minute left as Woodman made a terrific save from Sam Vokes' close-range header, but Hogan was on hand to slot home.

Swansea City boss Steve Cooper told BBC Sport Wales:

"We fell short of our performance levels today and it cost us, we turned the ball over too many times.

"If you don't do the basics well enough it will cost you, it is that black and white and that was the case today.

"We made a perfect start and should build on that, but for some reason we didn't want to break forward... we weren't brave enough... we encouraged them to come onto us in hurtful areas and then the inevitable will happen.

"We were not at the level required today and I thought in the end we didn't do enough to get a result in the end. We didn't play to our identity.

"Stoke's squad on paper is one of the strongest, if not the strongest, in the league, so I never looked at the league table.

"We didn't get too high when things were going well and we won't get too low about this."

Stoke manager Nathan Jones said:

"It is a big win, a big performance when we needed it. It is not drastically different to some of our other performances this season it is just today we were error free at key times.

"It was a wonderful performance today and it should have been more, we missed clear chances that other teams would take. We have created 41 chances in the two games prior to this and we lost them both.

"I have done a lot of thinking and soul searching. I am a passionate guy and that is what has got me the career I've had, 30-years in the game with very little ability when I come from a mining community in Wales.

"I have had to work my socks off to get where I am. I have had to fight for every part of my career and as a coach I am no different. I've gone back to being me and I like me.

"We need a catalyst... this is the first step on the ladder. It's one step."