diff --git a/src/compiler/commandLineParser.ts b/src/compiler/commandLineParser.ts
index 71292cd2322..2c8332d127c 100644
--- a/src/compiler/commandLineParser.ts
+++ b/src/compiler/commandLineParser.ts
@@ -558,7 +558,7 @@ namespace ts {
                 }
                 else {
                     // by default exclude node_modules, and any specificied output directory
-                    exclude = ["./node_modules"]
+                    exclude = ["node_modules"]
                     let outDir = json["compilerOptions"] && json["compilerOptions"]["outDir"];
                     if(outDir) {
                         exclude.push(outDir);