diff --git a/lib/group_cpus.c b/lib/group_cpus.c
index aa3f6815bb12..ee272c4cefcc 100644
--- a/lib/group_cpus.c
+++ b/lib/group_cpus.c
@@ -366,13 +366,25 @@ struct cpumask *group_cpus_evenly(unsigned int numgrps)
 	if (!masks)
 		goto fail_node_to_cpumask;
 
-	/* Stabilize the cpumasks */
-	cpus_read_lock();
 	build_node_to_cpumask(node_to_cpumask);
 
+	/*
+	 * Make a local cache of 'cpu_present_mask', so the two stages
+	 * spread can observe consistent 'cpu_present_mask' without holding
+	 * cpu hotplug lock, then we can reduce deadlock risk with cpu
+	 * hotplug code.
+	 *
+	 * Here CPU hotplug may happen when reading `cpu_present_mask`, and
+	 * we can live with the case because it only affects that hotplug
+	 * CPU is handled in the 1st or 2nd stage, and either way is correct
+	 * from API user viewpoint since 2-stage spread is sort of
+	 * optimization.
+	 */
+	cpumask_copy(npresmsk, data_race(cpu_present_mask));
+
 	/* grouping present CPUs first */
 	ret = __group_cpus_evenly(curgrp, numgrps, node_to_cpumask,
-				  cpu_present_mask, nmsk, masks);
+				  npresmsk, nmsk, masks);
 	if (ret < 0)
 		goto fail_build_affinity;
 	nr_present = ret;
@@ -387,15 +399,13 @@ struct cpumask *group_cpus_evenly(unsigned int numgrps)
 		curgrp = 0;
 	else
 		curgrp = nr_present;
-	cpumask_andnot(npresmsk, cpu_possible_mask, cpu_present_mask);
+	cpumask_andnot(npresmsk, cpu_possible_mask, npresmsk);
 	ret = __group_cpus_evenly(curgrp, numgrps, node_to_cpumask,
 				  npresmsk, nmsk, masks);
 	if (ret >= 0)
 		nr_others = ret;
 
  fail_build_affinity:
-	cpus_read_unlock();
-
 	if (ret >= 0)
 		WARN_ON(nr_present + nr_others < numgrps);