diff --git a/src/content-linter/lib/linting-rules/list-first-word-capitalization.js b/src/content-linter/lib/linting-rules/list-first-word-capitalization.js
index f19b566b8958..3d84649dec0c 100644
--- a/src/content-linter/lib/linting-rules/list-first-word-capitalization.js
+++ b/src/content-linter/lib/linting-rules/list-first-word-capitalization.js
@@ -36,7 +36,8 @@ export const listFirstWordCapitalization = {
       if (firstWord.startsWith('[{%') || firstWord.startsWith('{%') || firstWord.startsWith('{{'))
         return
       // If the first letter is capitalized, it's not an error
-      if (/[A-Z]/.test(firstWord[0])) return
+      // And any special characters (like @) that can't be capitalized
+      if (/[A-Z@]/.test(firstWord[0])) return
       // There are items that start with a number or words that contain numbers
       // e.g., x64
       if (/\d/.test(firstWord)) return
diff --git a/src/content-linter/tests/unit/list-first-word-captitalization.js b/src/content-linter/tests/unit/list-first-word-captitalization.js
index d596346b86dc..510a5b23ad97 100644
--- a/src/content-linter/tests/unit/list-first-word-captitalization.js
+++ b/src/content-linter/tests/unit/list-first-word-captitalization.js
@@ -51,6 +51,8 @@ describe(listFirstWordCapitalization.names.join(' - '), () => {
       '- {% data variables.product.prodname_dotcom_the_website %} Services Continuity and Incident Management Plan',
       '-  {% data variables.product.prodname_dotcom_the_website %} Services Continuity and Incident Management Plan',
       '- x64',
+      '- @mention your friends',
+      '- @hash tags',
       '- 05:00',
     ].join('\n')
     const result = await runRule(listFirstWordCapitalization, { strings: { markdown } })