diff --git a/python/setup.py b/python/setup.py
index 58b124272..3ed3304fc 100644
--- a/python/setup.py
+++ b/python/setup.py
@@ -108,6 +108,7 @@ def _maybe_add_library_root(lib_name):
     ext_modules=[ctranslate2_module],
     python_requires=">=3.8",
     install_requires=[
+        "setuptools",
         "numpy",
         "pyyaml>=5.3,<7",
     ],