diff --git a/ckan/lib/cli.py b/ckan/lib/cli.py
index 8c17a80d2c3..aecc40c2f2e 100644
--- a/ckan/lib/cli.py
+++ b/ckan/lib/cli.py
@@ -118,6 +118,7 @@ def user_add(args):
 
     # Required
     while '@' not in data_dict.get('email', ''):
+        print('Error: Invalid email address')
         data_dict['email'] = input('Email address: ').strip()
 
     if 'password' not in data_dict: