diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index ce980d06bc0a9c..a59d9641191259 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ run: welcome githooks-commit install build
 	@$(NODE) build/bundle-$(CALYPSO_ENV).js
 
 node-version:
-	@$(BIN)/check-node-version
+	@NPM_GLOBAL_ROOT=$(shell $(NPM) -g root) $(BIN)/check-node-version
 
 # a helper rule to ensure that a specific module is installed,
 # without relying on a generic `npm install` command
diff --git a/bin/check-node-version b/bin/check-node-version
index c574acad93404a..557712afa8a626 100755
--- a/bin/check-node-version
+++ b/bin/check-node-version
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 #!/usr/bin/env node
 const requiredVersion = require( '../package' ).engines.node,
-	semver = require( 'semver' );
+	semver = require( process.env.NPM_GLOBAL_ROOT + '/npm/node_modules/semver' );
 
 if ( ! semver.satisfies( process.version, requiredVersion ) ) {
 	console.error( 'wp-calypso requires node ' + requiredVersion + '. Please upgrade! See https://nodejs.org for instructions.' );