diff --git a/cmake/packaging/common.cmake b/cmake/packaging/common.cmake
index 7c76756c..d8343219 100644
--- a/cmake/packaging/common.cmake
+++ b/cmake/packaging/common.cmake
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@
 # common cpack options
 set(CPACK_PACKAGE_NAME ${CMAKE_PROJECT_NAME})
 set(CPACK_PACKAGE_VENDOR "LizardByte")
-set(CPACK_PACKAGE_VERSION ${PROJECT_VERSION})
+string(REGEX REPLACE "^v" "" CPACK_PACKAGE_VERSION ${PROJECT_VERSION})  # remove the v prefix if it exists
 set(CPACK_PACKAGE_DIRECTORY ${CMAKE_CURRENT_BINARY_DIR}/cpack_artifacts)
 set(CPACK_PACKAGE_CONTACT "https://app.lizardbyte.dev")
 set(CPACK_PACKAGE_DESCRIPTION ${CMAKE_PROJECT_DESCRIPTION})