diff --git a/pkgs/development/libraries/boost/generic.nix b/pkgs/development/libraries/boost/generic.nix
index c0fce3ae5760..17698216b8d9 100644
--- a/pkgs/development/libraries/boost/generic.nix
+++ b/pkgs/development/libraries/boost/generic.nix
@@ -68,7 +68,7 @@ let
     else
       "$NIX_BUILD_CORES";
 
-  needUserConfig = stdenv.hostPlatform != stdenv.buildPlatform || useMpi || stdenv.isDarwin;
+  needUserConfig = stdenv.hostPlatform != stdenv.buildPlatform || useMpi || (stdenv.isDarwin && enableShared);
 
   b2Args = concatStringsSep " " ([
     "--includedir=$dev/include"