diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
index eb086dd5..ea12903c 100644
--- a/setup.py
+++ b/setup.py
@@ -13,10 +13,9 @@
 ]
 
 needs_pytest = {'pytest', 'test', 'ptr'}.intersection(sys.argv)
-pytest_runner = ['pytest-runner'] if needs_pytest else []
 
 setup_requires = [
-] + pytest_runner
+]
 
 tests_require = [
     'pytest',