diff --git a/src/plugins/qmlprojectmanager/buildsystem/qmlbuildsystem.cpp b/src/plugins/qmlprojectmanager/buildsystem/qmlbuildsystem.cpp
index 0813e1dd03d..5a64c8b7de0 100644
--- a/src/plugins/qmlprojectmanager/buildsystem/qmlbuildsystem.cpp
+++ b/src/plugins/qmlprojectmanager/buildsystem/qmlbuildsystem.cpp
@@ -380,6 +380,9 @@ Utils::FilePath QmlBuildSystem::getStartupQmlFileWithFallback() const
     if (!target())
         return {};
 
+    if (projectFilePath().endsWith(Constants::fakeProjectName))
+        return {};
+
     const auto getFirstFittingFile = [](const Utils::FilePaths &files) -> Utils::FilePath {
         for (const auto &file : files) {
             if (file.exists())