diff --git a/src/main/java/org/apache/commons/text/StringSubstitutor.java b/src/main/java/org/apache/commons/text/StringSubstitutor.java
index 9c24a6deba..9458154d70 100644
--- a/src/main/java/org/apache/commons/text/StringSubstitutor.java
+++ b/src/main/java/org/apache/commons/text/StringSubstitutor.java
@@ -1434,6 +1434,9 @@ private Result substitute(final TextStringBuilder builder, final int offset, fin
         boolean altered = false;
         int lengthChange = 0;
         int bufEnd = offset + length;
+        // An escape character is honored when it lies in the range being substituted, or immediately before it: the character just before the range is the
+        // one that prefixes the first position of the range, so dropping it there would substitute a variable the caller escaped.
+        final int escStart = offset > 0 ? offset - 1 : offset;
         int pos = offset;
         int escPos = -1;
         outer: while (pos < bufEnd) {
@@ -1442,7 +1445,7 @@ private Result substitute(final TextStringBuilder builder, final int offset, fin
                 pos++;
             } else {
                 // found variable start marker
-                if (pos > offset && builder.charAt(pos - 1) == escapeCh) {
+                if (pos > escStart && builder.charAt(pos - 1) == escapeCh) {
                     // escape detected
                     if (preserveEscapes) {
                         // keep escape
diff --git a/src/test/java/org/apache/commons/text/StringSubstitutorTest.java b/src/test/java/org/apache/commons/text/StringSubstitutorTest.java
index a6fdf45297..8843827de6 100644
--- a/src/test/java/org/apache/commons/text/StringSubstitutorTest.java
+++ b/src/test/java/org/apache/commons/text/StringSubstitutorTest.java
@@ -1083,6 +1083,43 @@ void testSubstitutePreserveEscape() throws IOException {
         assertEqualsCharSeq("value $${escaped}", replace(sub, org));
     }
 
+    /**
+     * An escape character that directly precedes the first position of the range being substituted must still escape the variable, whether the range starts
+     * at the beginning of the builder or not.
+     */
+    @Test
+    void testSubstituteEscapeAtStartOfRange() {
+        final Map<String, String> map = new HashMap<>();
+        map.put("user", "fred");
+        map.put("a", "A");
+        final StringSubstitutor sub = new StringSubstitutor(map, "${", "}", '~');
+
+        // The whole builder.
+        final TextStringBuilder whole = new TextStringBuilder("~${user}");
+        assertTrue(sub.replaceIn(whole));
+        assertEqualsCharSeq("${user}", whole.toString());
+
+        // Only the escaped variable, so the escape character sits immediately before the substituted range.
+        final TextStringBuilder range = new TextStringBuilder("~${user}");
+        assertTrue(sub.replaceIn(range, 1, range.length() - 1));
+        assertEqualsCharSeq("${user}", range.toString());
+
+        // Same text, same result, when the escaped variable is followed by an unescaped one.
+        final TextStringBuilder rangeWithTail = new TextStringBuilder("~${a} and ${a}");
+        assertTrue(sub.replaceIn(rangeWithTail, 1, rangeWithTail.length() - 1));
+        assertEqualsCharSeq("${a} and A", rangeWithTail.toString());
+
+        // An escape character inside the range keeps working as before.
+        final TextStringBuilder inside = new TextStringBuilder("x~${user}");
+        assertTrue(sub.replaceIn(inside, 1, inside.length() - 1));
+        assertEqualsCharSeq("x${user}", inside.toString());
+
+        // An escape character before the range that is not the variable's own escape is left alone.
+        final TextStringBuilder unrelated = new TextStringBuilder("x~y${user}");
+        assertTrue(sub.replaceIn(unrelated, 2, unrelated.length() - 2));
+        assertEqualsCharSeq("x~yfred", unrelated.toString());
+    }
+
     @Test
     void testToString() {
         final StringSubstitutor s = new StringSubstitutor(null, "prefix", "suffix");