diff --git a/packages/vitest/src/node/plugins/runnerTransform.ts b/packages/vitest/src/node/plugins/runnerTransform.ts
index f8d126b63..cfea0d0c3 100644
--- a/packages/vitest/src/node/plugins/runnerTransform.ts
+++ b/packages/vitest/src/node/plugins/runnerTransform.ts
@@ -117,7 +117,9 @@ export function ModuleRunnerTransform(): VitePlugin {
         // remove Vite's externalization logic because we have our own (unfortunately)
         config.resolve.external = [
           ...builtinModules,
-          ...builtinModules.map(m => `node:${m}`),
+          ...builtinModules
+            .filter(m => !m.startsWith('node:'))
+            .map(m => `node:${m}`),
         ]
 
         // by setting `noExternal` to `true`, we make sure that