diff --git a/pygsti/protocols/rb.py b/pygsti/protocols/rb.py
index ae5a98e1e..9929752fe 100644
--- a/pygsti/protocols/rb.py
+++ b/pygsti/protocols/rb.py
@@ -204,7 +204,6 @@ def __init__(self, pspec, clifford_compilations, depths, circuits_per_depth, qub
                  interleaved_circuit=None, citerations=20, compilerargs=(), exact_compilation_key=None,
                  descriptor='A Clifford RB experiment', add_default_protocol=False, seed=None, verbosity=1, num_processes=1):
         if qubit_labels is None: qubit_labels = tuple(pspec.qubit_labels)
-        assert len(qubit_labels) == len(pspec.qubit_labels), "Must provide qubit labels that match number of qubits in pspec"
         circuit_lists = []
         ideal_outs = []
         native_gate_counts = []