diff --git a/src/modules/parseTaskText.ts b/src/modules/parseTaskText.ts
index 3e6dedf83..0b4044d1c 100644
--- a/src/modules/parseTaskText.ts
+++ b/src/modules/parseTaskText.ts
@@ -109,7 +109,7 @@ const getItemsFromPrefix = (text: string, prefix: string): string[] => {
 			return
 		}
 
-		if (p.substring(0, 1) === prefix) {
+		if (p.startsWith(prefix)) {
 			p = p.substring(1)
 		}