Preston had the first chance after just two minutes when a left-wing Ross Wallace cross was met by striker Chris Brown whose effort was straight at Morecambe goalkeeper Barry Roche.
In the eighth minute Barry Nicholson found Brown and his shot was well tipped around the post by Roche and three minutes later he saved a Chris Sedgwick cross and then a Wallace left-foot right wing corner.
After twenty minutes a Wallace left-foot free kick was saved and then three minutes later Darren Carter's 25-yard curling shot was saved.
Preston goalkeeper Andrew Lonergan fouled Ian Craney after 29 minutes and Morecambe were awarded a penalty, but Mark Duffy's penalty was punched away by Lonergan who dived right in the bottom left hand corner. His penalty save was his third out of four including pre-season games.
Preston opened the scoring in the 33rd minute when Brown headed a Michael Hart cross home from close range.
Roche saved an in-swinging Wallace corner in the 38th minute and a Billy Jones shot from a Carter cross after 41 minutes.
In the second minute of first half added time, Preston made it 2-0 when a Wallace right-wing corner found an unmarked Stephen Elliott, who headed home from inside the penalty area.
At the start of the second half Lonergan saved from Duffy twice and Roche saved a Sedgwick shot and crosses from Wallace and Hart.
Preston's third came after 57 minutes when Nicholson at the near post put a close range header into the bottom left from a Wallace left-wing cross.
Substitute Neal Trotman scored with his first touch, a close range header into the bottom left after 69 minutes from a Nicholson left-wing corner.
Neil Mellor made it 5-0 into the bottom left from 18 yards in the second minute of added time from a Trotman assist but Morecambe's Michael Twiss pulled back a consolation two minutes later into the bottom right from six yards.