diff --git a/lib/assemble.js b/lib/assemble.js
index 4d48cbfef..c91eb0bd1 100644
--- a/lib/assemble.js
+++ b/lib/assemble.js
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ var Assemble = function() {
     this.options.collections = mergeOptionsArrays.apply(this, [task.target, 'collections']);
 
     // add default collections
-    this.options.collections = _.union(this.options.collections, ['tags', 'categories', { name: 'pages' }]);
+    this.options.collections = _.union(['tags', 'categories', { name: 'pages' }], this.options.collections);
 
     this.options.collections = collection.normalize(this.options.collections);