diff --git a/main.go b/main.go
index 3af2ad3ac..126ce04af 100644
--- a/main.go
+++ b/main.go
@@ -572,7 +572,9 @@ func main() {
 	if *flUsername == "" {
 		// username and user@host URLs are validated as mutually exclusive
 		if u, err := url.Parse(*flRepo); err == nil { // it may not even parse as a URL, that's OK
-			if u.User != nil && u.Scheme != "ssh" {
+			// Note that `ssh://user@host/path` URLs need to retain the user
+			// field. Out of caution, we only handle HTTP(S) URLs here.
+			if u.User != nil && (u.Scheme == "http" || u.Scheme == "https") {
 				if user := u.User.Username(); user != "" {
 					*flUsername = user
 				}
diff --git a/test_e2e.sh b/test_e2e.sh
index 147519d3b..affc2afa3 100755
--- a/test_e2e.sh
+++ b/test_e2e.sh
@@ -1892,7 +1892,7 @@ function e2e::auth_http_password_file() {
 }
 
 ##############################################
-# Test SSH
+# Test SSH (user@host:path syntax)
 ##############################################
 function e2e::auth_ssh() {
     # Run a git-over-SSH server.  Use key #3 to exercise the multi-key logic.
@@ -1929,6 +1929,44 @@ function e2e::auth_ssh() {
     assert_file_eq "$ROOT/link/file" "$FUNCNAME"
 }
 
+##############################################
+# Test SSH (ssh://user@host/path syntax)
+##############################################
+function e2e::auth_ssh_url() {
+    # Run a git-over-SSH server.  Use key #3 to exercise the multi-key logic.
+    CTR=$(docker_run \
+        -v "$DOT_SSH/server/3":/dot_ssh:ro \
+        -v "$REPO":/git/repo:ro \
+        e2e/test/sshd)
+    IP=$(docker_ip "$CTR")
+
+    # Try to sync with key #1.
+    assert_fail \
+        GIT_SYNC \
+            --one-time \
+            --repo="ssh://test@$IP/git/repo" \
+            --root="$ROOT" \
+            --link="link" \
+            --ssh-known-hosts=false \
+            --ssh-key-file="/ssh/secret.2"
+    assert_file_absent "$ROOT/link/file"
+
+    # Try to sync with multiple keys
+    GIT_SYNC \
+        --one-time \
+        --repo="ssh://test@$IP/git/repo" \
+        --root="$ROOT" \
+        --link="link" \
+        --ssh-known-hosts=false \
+        --ssh-key-file="/ssh/secret.1" \
+        --ssh-key-file="/ssh/secret.2" \
+        --ssh-key-file="/ssh/secret.3"
+
+    assert_link_exists "$ROOT/link"
+    assert_file_exists "$ROOT/link/file"
+    assert_file_eq "$ROOT/link/file" "$FUNCNAME"
+}
+
 ##############################################
 # Test askpass-url with bad password
 ##############################################