diff --git a/cranelift/src/cton-util.rs b/cranelift/src/cton-util.rs
index a7ad8a44b4..e702f57ae4 100644
--- a/cranelift/src/cton-util.rs
+++ b/cranelift/src/cton-util.rs
@@ -98,6 +98,7 @@ fn main() {
         if !msg.ends_with('\n') {
             msg.push('\n');
         }
+        io::stdout().flush().expect("flushing stdout");
         io::stderr().write_all(msg.as_bytes()).unwrap();
         process::exit(1);
     }