diff --git a/plugins/vi-mode/vi-mode.plugin.zsh b/plugins/vi-mode/vi-mode.plugin.zsh
index 0e2af5dce..25b2a2055 100644
--- a/plugins/vi-mode/vi-mode.plugin.zsh
+++ b/plugins/vi-mode/vi-mode.plugin.zsh
@@ -28,6 +28,9 @@ bindkey '^?' backward-delete-char
 bindkey '^h' backward-delete-char
 bindkey '^w' backward-kill-word
 
+# allow ctrl-r to perform backward search in history
+bindkey '^r' history-incremental-search-backward
+
 # if mode indicator wasn't setup by theme, define default
 if [[ "$MODE_INDICATOR" == "" ]]; then
   MODE_INDICATOR="%{$fg_bold[red]%}<%{$fg[red]%}<<%{$reset_color%}"