diff --git a/packages/vite/src/node/optimizer/index.ts b/packages/vite/src/node/optimizer/index.ts
index f58f3870e947e0..a9b6094c2ecf8d 100644
--- a/packages/vite/src/node/optimizer/index.ts
+++ b/packages/vite/src/node/optimizer/index.ts
@@ -364,7 +364,7 @@ export async function loadCachedDepOptimizationMetadata(
     setTimeout(
       () => cleanupDepsCacheStaleDirs(environment.getTopLevelConfig()),
       0,
-    )
+    ).unref()
   }
 
   const depsCacheDir = getDepsCacheDir(environment)