diff --git a/tests/libqtest.c b/tests/libqtest.c
index 84ecbd2bd8..4a5492a603 100644
--- a/tests/libqtest.c
+++ b/tests/libqtest.c
@@ -160,7 +160,10 @@ QTestState *qtest_init_without_qmp_handshake(const char *extra_args)
     const char *qemu_binary;
 
     qemu_binary = getenv("QTEST_QEMU_BINARY");
-    g_assert(qemu_binary != NULL);
+    if (!qemu_binary) {
+        fprintf(stderr, "Environment variable QTEST_QEMU_BINARY required\n");
+        exit(1);
+    }
 
     s = g_malloc(sizeof(*s));