diff --git a/packages/babel-core/src/config/config-descriptors.js b/packages/babel-core/src/config/config-descriptors.js
index 52dd2b6df039..d9218a87c020 100644
--- a/packages/babel-core/src/config/config-descriptors.js
+++ b/packages/babel-core/src/config/config-descriptors.js
@@ -15,7 +15,6 @@ import type {
   PluginList,
   PluginItem,
 } from "./validation/options";
-import { assertNoUnwrappedItemOptionPairs } from "./validation/options";
 
 // Represents a config object and functions to lazily load the descriptors
 // for the plugins and presets so we don't load the plugins/presets unless
@@ -230,7 +229,6 @@ function createDescriptors(
   alias: string,
   ownPass?: boolean,
 ): Array<UnloadedDescriptor> {
-  assertNoUnwrappedItemOptionPairs(items, type);
   const descriptors = items.map((item, index) =>
     createDescriptor(item, dirname, {
       type,
diff --git a/packages/babel-core/src/config/full.js b/packages/babel-core/src/config/full.js
index d38aec4ba698..940d1f914f9a 100644
--- a/packages/babel-core/src/config/full.js
+++ b/packages/babel-core/src/config/full.js
@@ -13,7 +13,11 @@ import {
 import type { UnloadedDescriptor } from "./config-descriptors";
 import traverse from "@babel/traverse";
 import { makeWeakCache, type CacheConfigurator } from "./caching";
-import { validate, type CallerMetadata } from "./validation/options";
+import {
+  validate,
+  type CallerMetadata,
+  checkNoUnwrappedItemOptionPairs,
+} from "./validation/options";
 import { validatePluginObject } from "./validation/plugins";
 import makeAPI from "./helpers/config-api";
 
@@ -70,21 +74,54 @@ export default function loadFullConfig(
       },
       pass: Array<Plugin>,
     ) {
-      const plugins = config.plugins.reduce((acc, descriptor) => {
-        if (descriptor.options !== false) {
-          acc.push(loadPluginDescriptor(descriptor, context));
-        }
-        return acc;
-      }, []);
-      const presets = config.presets.reduce((acc, descriptor) => {
-        if (descriptor.options !== false) {
-          acc.push({
-            preset: loadPresetDescriptor(descriptor, context),
-            pass: descriptor.ownPass ? [] : pass,
-          });
-        }
-        return acc;
-      }, []);
+      const plugins = config.plugins.reduce(
+        (acc: Plugin[], descriptor: UnloadedDescriptor, i) => {
+          if (descriptor.options !== false) {
+            try {
+              acc.push(loadPluginDescriptor(descriptor, context));
+            } catch (e) {
+              // print special message for `plugins: ["@babel/foo", { foo: "option" }]`
+              if (i > 0 && e.code === "BABEL_UNKNOWN_PLUGIN_PROPERTY") {
+                checkNoUnwrappedItemOptionPairs(
+                  config.plugins[i - 1],
+                  descriptor,
+                  "plugin",
+                  i,
+                  e,
+                );
+              }
+              throw e;
+            }
+          }
+          return acc;
+        },
+        [],
+      );
+      const presets = config.presets.reduce(
+        (acc, descriptor: UnloadedDescriptor, i) => {
+          if (descriptor.options !== false) {
+            try {
+              acc.push({
+                preset: loadPresetDescriptor(descriptor, context),
+                pass: descriptor.ownPass ? [] : pass,
+              });
+            } catch (e) {
+              if (i > 0 && e.code === "BABEL_UNKNOWN_OPTION") {
+                checkNoUnwrappedItemOptionPairs(
+                  config.presets[i - 1],
+                  descriptor,
+                  "preset",
+                  i,
+                  e,
+                );
+              }
+              throw e;
+            }
+          }
+          return acc;
+        },
+        [],
+      );
 
       // resolve presets
       if (presets.length > 0) {
diff --git a/packages/babel-core/src/config/validation/options.js b/packages/babel-core/src/config/validation/options.js
index 055ea1f42ae6..54f35165073d 100644
--- a/packages/babel-core/src/config/validation/options.js
+++ b/packages/babel-core/src/config/validation/options.js
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ import {
   type Validator,
   type OptionPath,
 } from "./option-assertions";
-import { validatePluginObject } from "./plugins";
+import type { UnloadedDescriptor } from "../config-descriptors";
 
 const ROOT_VALIDATORS: ValidatorSet = {
   cwd: (assertString: Validator<$PropertyType<ValidatedOptions, "cwd">>),
@@ -371,11 +371,14 @@ function throwUnknownError(loc: OptionPath) {
     );
   } else {
     // eslint-disable-next-line max-len
-    const unknownOptErr = `Unknown option: ${msg(
-      loc,
-    )}. Check out https://babeljs.io/docs/en/babel-core/#options for more information about options.`;
+    const unknownOptErr = new ReferenceError(
+      `Unknown option: ${msg(
+        loc,
+      )}. Check out https://babeljs.io/docs/en/babel-core/#options for more information about options.`,
+    );
+    unknownOptErr.code = "BABEL_UNKNOWN_OPTION";
 
-    throw new ReferenceError(unknownOptErr);
+    throw unknownOptErr;
   }
 }
 
@@ -441,26 +444,25 @@ function assertOverridesList(loc: OptionPath, value: mixed): OverridesList {
   return (arr: any);
 }
 
-export function assertNoUnwrappedItemOptionPairs(
-  items: PluginList,
+export function checkNoUnwrappedItemOptionPairs(
+  lastItem: UnloadedDescriptor,
+  thisItem: UnloadedDescriptor,
   type: "plugin" | "preset",
+  index: number,
+  e: Error,
 ): void {
   if (
-    items.length === 2 &&
-    typeof items[0] === "string" &&
-    typeof items[1] === "object" &&
-    !Array.isArray(items[1])
+    lastItem.file &&
+    lastItem.options === undefined &&
+    typeof thisItem.value === "object"
   ) {
-    try {
-      type === "preset"
-        ? validate(type, items[1])
-        : validatePluginObject(items[1]);
-    } catch (e) {
-      throw new Error(
-        `.${type}[1] is not a valid ${type}. Maybe you meant to use\n` +
-          `"${type}": [\n  ["${items[0]}", ${JSON.stringify(items[1])}]\n]\n` +
-          `To be a valid ${type}, its name and options should be wrapped in a pair of brackets`,
-      );
-    }
+    e.message +=
+      `\n- Maybe you meant to use\n` +
+      `"${type}": [\n  ["${lastItem.file.request}", ${JSON.stringify(
+        thisItem.value,
+        undefined,
+        2,
+      )}]\n]\n` +
+      `To be a valid ${type}, its name and options should be wrapped in a pair of brackets`;
   }
 }
diff --git a/packages/babel-core/src/config/validation/plugins.js b/packages/babel-core/src/config/validation/plugins.js
index ea1fc514306d..1990cb82dd83 100644
--- a/packages/babel-core/src/config/validation/plugins.js
+++ b/packages/babel-core/src/config/validation/plugins.js
@@ -97,7 +97,13 @@ export function validatePluginObject(obj: {}): PluginObject {
     };
 
     if (validator) validator(optLoc, obj[key]);
-    else throw new Error(`.${key} is not a valid Plugin property`);
+    else {
+      const invalidPluginPropertyError = new Error(
+        `.${key} is not a valid Plugin property`,
+      );
+      invalidPluginPropertyError.code = "BABEL_UNKNOWN_PLUGIN_PROPERTY";
+      throw invalidPluginPropertyError;
+    }
   });
 
   return (obj: any);
diff --git a/packages/babel-core/test/__snapshots__/option-manager.js.snap b/packages/babel-core/test/__snapshots__/option-manager.js.snap
index e710e54d9de9..89112efc6f88 100644
--- a/packages/babel-core/test/__snapshots__/option-manager.js.snap
+++ b/packages/babel-core/test/__snapshots__/option-manager.js.snap
@@ -1,7 +1,8 @@
 // Jest Snapshot v1, https://goo.gl/fbAQLP
 
 exports[`option-manager config plugin/preset flattening and overriding should throw when an option is provided as a plugin 1`] = `
-"[BABEL] unknown: .plugin[1] is not a valid plugin. Maybe you meant to use
+"[BABEL] unknown: .useSpread is not a valid Plugin property
+- Maybe you meant to use
 \\"plugin\\": [
   [\\"./fixtures/option-manager/babel-plugin-foo\\", {
   \\"useSpread\\": true
@@ -11,7 +12,8 @@ To be a valid plugin, its name and options should be wrapped in a pair of bracke
 `;
 
 exports[`option-manager config plugin/preset flattening and overriding should throw when an option is provided as a preset 1`] = `
-"[BABEL] unknown: .preset[1] is not a valid preset. Maybe you meant to use
+"[BABEL] unknown: Unknown option: .useBuiltIns. Check out https://babeljs.io/docs/en/babel-core/#options for more information about options.
+- Maybe you meant to use
 \\"preset\\": [
   [\\"./fixtures/option-manager/babel-preset-bar\\", {
   \\"useBuiltIns\\": \\"entry\\"