diff --git a/lib/internal/modules/esm/get_format.js b/lib/internal/modules/esm/get_format.js
index 5c551d4af2df22..ae7b73008f3d06 100644
--- a/lib/internal/modules/esm/get_format.js
+++ b/lib/internal/modules/esm/get_format.js
@@ -95,6 +95,19 @@ function underNodeModules(url) {
 }
 
 let typelessPackageJsonFilesWarnedAbout;
+function warnTypelessPackageJsonFile(pjsonPath, url) {
+  typelessPackageJsonFilesWarnedAbout ??= new SafeSet();
+  if (!typelessPackageJsonFilesWarnedAbout.has(pjsonPath)) {
+    const warning = `Module type of ${url} is not specified and it doesn't parse as CommonJS.\n` +
+      'Reparsing as ES module because module syntax was detected. This incurs a performance overhead.\n' +
+      `To eliminate this warning, add "type": "module" to ${pjsonPath}.`;
+    process.emitWarning(warning, {
+      code: 'MODULE_TYPELESS_PACKAGE_JSON',
+    });
+    typelessPackageJsonFilesWarnedAbout.add(pjsonPath);
+  }
+}
+
 /**
  * @param {URL} url
  * @param {{parentURL: string; source?: Buffer}} context
@@ -106,7 +119,7 @@ function getFileProtocolModuleFormat(url, context = { __proto__: null }, ignoreE
   const ext = extname(url);
 
   if (ext === '.js') {
-    const { type: packageType, pjsonPath } = getPackageScopeConfig(url);
+    const { type: packageType, pjsonPath, exists: foundPackageJson } = getPackageScopeConfig(url);
     if (packageType !== 'none') {
       return packageType;
     }
@@ -127,18 +140,10 @@ function getFileProtocolModuleFormat(url, context = { __proto__: null }, ignoreE
         // For ambiguous files (no type field, .js extension) we return
         // undefined from `resolve` and re-run the check in `load`.
         const format = detectModuleFormat(source, url);
-        if (format === 'module') {
+        if (format === 'module' && foundPackageJson) {
           // This module has a .js extension, a package.json with no `type` field, and ESM syntax.
           // Warn about the missing `type` field so that the user can avoid the performance penalty of detection.
-          typelessPackageJsonFilesWarnedAbout ??= new SafeSet();
-          if (!typelessPackageJsonFilesWarnedAbout.has(pjsonPath)) {
-            const warning = `${url} parsed as an ES module because module syntax was detected;` +
-            ` to avoid the performance penalty of syntax detection, add "type": "module" to ${pjsonPath}`;
-            process.emitWarning(warning, {
-              code: 'MODULE_TYPELESS_PACKAGE_JSON',
-            });
-            typelessPackageJsonFilesWarnedAbout.add(pjsonPath);
-          }
+          warnTypelessPackageJsonFile(pjsonPath, url);
         }
         return format;
       }
diff --git a/test/es-module/test-esm-detect-ambiguous.mjs b/test/es-module/test-esm-detect-ambiguous.mjs
index 91c8489d30df09..2d7df8d308082f 100644
--- a/test/es-module/test-esm-detect-ambiguous.mjs
+++ b/test/es-module/test-esm-detect-ambiguous.mjs
@@ -352,6 +352,18 @@ describe('Module syntax detection', { concurrency: !process.env.TEST_PARALLEL },
       });
     }
 
+    it('does not warn when there are no package.json', async () => {
+      const { stdout, stderr, code, signal } = await spawnPromisified(process.execPath, [
+        fixtures.path('es-modules/loose.js'),
+      ]);
+
+      strictEqual(stderr, '');
+      strictEqual(stdout, 'executed\n');
+      strictEqual(code, 0);
+      strictEqual(signal, null);
+    });
+
+
     it('warns only once for a package.json that affects multiple files', async () => {
       const { stdout, stderr, code, signal } = await spawnPromisified(process.execPath, [
         fixtures.path('es-modules/package-without-type/detected-as-esm.js'),