diff --git a/packages/vite-node/src/cli.ts b/packages/vite-node/src/cli.ts
index cbb8c82c890a..f0ae153bee02 100644
--- a/packages/vite-node/src/cli.ts
+++ b/packages/vite-node/src/cli.ts
@@ -90,6 +90,7 @@ async function run(files: string[], options: CliOptions = {}) {
     mode: options.mode,
     server: {
       hmr: !!options.watch,
+      watch: options.watch ? undefined : null,
     },
     plugins: [options.watch && viteNodeHmrPlugin()],
   })