diff --git a/nix/artiq-dev.nix b/nix/artiq-dev.nix
index 38ef2dc9c..f5b125e65 100644
--- a/nix/artiq-dev.nix
+++ b/nix/artiq-dev.nix
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ in
       with pkgs; [
         ncurses5
         gnumake
+        zlib
         xorg.libSM
         xorg.libICE
         xorg.libXrender