diff --git a/.changeset/good-trainers-appear.md b/.changeset/good-trainers-appear.md
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..3bce8c86bd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/good-trainers-appear.md
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+---
+'@backstage/cli': patch
+---
+
+The check for `react-dom/client` will now properly always run from the target directory.
diff --git a/packages/cli/src/lib/bundler/hasReactDomClient.ts b/packages/cli/src/lib/bundler/hasReactDomClient.ts
index e7ef7bbac9..67e6a3f42e 100644
--- a/packages/cli/src/lib/bundler/hasReactDomClient.ts
+++ b/packages/cli/src/lib/bundler/hasReactDomClient.ts
@@ -13,9 +13,14 @@
  * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
  * limitations under the License.
  */
+
+import { paths } from '../paths';
+
 export function hasReactDomClient() {
   try {
-    require.resolve('react-dom/client');
+    require.resolve('react-dom/client', {
+      paths: [paths.targetDir],
+    });
     return true;
   } catch {
     return false;