diff --git a/bin/yunohost b/bin/yunohost
index 0f2385c10..b2a0e4b1b 100755
--- a/bin/yunohost
+++ b/bin/yunohost
@@ -185,6 +185,12 @@ def _retrieve_namespaces():
 # Main action ----------------------------------------------------------
 
 if __name__ == '__main__':
+    if os.geteuid() != 0:
+        # since moulinette isn't initialized, we can't use m18n here
+        sys.stderr.write("\033[1;31mError:\033[0m yunohost command must be " \
+                         "run as root or with sudo.\n")
+        sys.exit(1)
+
     parser, opts, args = _parse_cli_args()
     _init_moulinette(opts.debug, opts.verbose, opts.quiet)