diff --git a/helix-term/src/commands/typed.rs b/helix-term/src/commands/typed.rs
index 49864abb6..4c5d568aa 100644
--- a/helix-term/src/commands/typed.rs
+++ b/helix-term/src/commands/typed.rs
@@ -2507,7 +2507,8 @@ fn read(cx: &mut compositor::Context, args: &[Cow<str>], event: PromptEvent) ->
     ensure!(args.len() == 1, "only the file name is expected");
 
     let filename = args.first().unwrap();
-    let path = PathBuf::from(filename.to_string());
+    let path = helix_stdx::path::expand_tilde(PathBuf::from(filename.to_string()));
+
     ensure!(
         path.exists() && path.is_file(),
         "path is not a file: {:?}",