diff --git a/bin/forbid b/bin/forbid
index 538c780c0d..8638e832c4 100755
--- a/bin/forbid
+++ b/bin/forbid
@@ -1,8 +1,12 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env bash
 
-set -euxo pipefail
+set -euo pipefail
+
+if ! which rg > /dev/null; then
+  echo 'error: `rg` not found, please install ripgrep: https://github.com/BurntSushi/ripgrep/'
+  exit 1
+fi
 
-which rg
 
 ! rg \
   --glob !bin/forbid \