diff --git a/.ci/setup.sh b/.ci/setup.sh
index fdc72b9d6da..ab1f415429d 100755
--- a/.ci/setup.sh
+++ b/.ci/setup.sh
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ set -e -E -u -o pipefail
 
 brew install cmake gcc
 
-git clone --recursive https://github.com/microsoft/LightGBM
+git clone --recursive -b test-install https://github.com/microsoft/LightGBM
 cd LightGBM
 export CXX=g++-14 CC=gcc-14  # replace "7" with version of gcc installed on your machine
 cmake -B build -S . -DBUILD_CPP_TEST=ON