diff --git a/nixos/tests/kmscon.nix b/nixos/tests/kmscon.nix
index 1c67a16af2ba..f0fb27d9b0d5 100644
--- a/nixos/tests/kmscon.nix
+++ b/nixos/tests/kmscon.nix
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@
   enableOCR = true;
 
   testScript = ''
-    machine.start()
+    machine.wait_for_unit("default.target")
 
     with subtest("ensure we can open a tty"):
       machine.wait_for_text("alice@machine")