diff --git a/src/core/instance/lifecycle.ts b/src/core/instance/lifecycle.ts
index 94f42e27eb5..3f52d545023 100644
--- a/src/core/instance/lifecycle.ts
+++ b/src/core/instance/lifecycle.ts
@@ -281,7 +281,8 @@ export function updateChildComponent(
   vm.$options._parentVnode = parentVnode
   vm.$vnode = parentVnode // update vm's placeholder node without re-render
 
-  if (vm._vnode) {
+  // avoid change reference of keep-alive's vnode on prev _vnode
+  if (vm._vnode && vm.$options._componentTag !== 'keep-alive') {
     // update child tree's parent
     vm._vnode.parent = parentVnode
   }