diff --git a/packaging/standalone/install.envsubst b/packaging/standalone/install.envsubst
index 4b2898e225..15039ec02d 100644
--- a/packaging/standalone/install.envsubst
+++ b/packaging/standalone/install.envsubst
@@ -264,8 +264,11 @@ install_mise() {
   cd "$(dirname "$cache_file")" && get_checksum "$version" "$os" "$arch" "$ext" | "$(shasum_bin)" -c >/dev/null
 
   # extract tarball
+  if [ -d "$install_path" ]; then
+    error "MISE_INSTALL_PATH '$install_path' is a directory. Please set it to a file path, e.g. '$install_path/mise'."
+  fi
   mkdir -p "$install_dir"
-  rm -rf "$install_path"
+  rm -f "$install_path"
   extract_dir="$(mktemp -d)"
   cd "$extract_dir"
   if [ "$ext" = "tar.zst" ] && ! tar_supports_zstd; then