diff --git a/packages/flutter_tools/lib/src/tester/flutter_tester.dart b/packages/flutter_tools/lib/src/tester/flutter_tester.dart
index 2d29a315e41..098de28686e 100644
--- a/packages/flutter_tools/lib/src/tester/flutter_tester.dart
+++ b/packages/flutter_tools/lib/src/tester/flutter_tester.dart
@@ -150,7 +150,10 @@ class FlutterTesterDevice extends Device {
       printTrace(command.join(' '));
 
       _isRunning = true;
-      _process = await processManager.start(command);
+      _process = await processManager.start(command,
+      environment: <String, String>{
+        'FLUTTER_TEST': 'true',
+      });
       _process.exitCode.then((_) => _isRunning = false);
       _process.stdout
           .transform(utf8.decoder)