diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index cf1cf18ee008870bc0bdba12c30a2ef6b4dd653d..ed6707cb6b926c1206e50a86cba118e625e11c91 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -36,8 +36,10 @@ Building and installing
 git-series is written in Rust.  You'll need both Rust and Cargo installed to
 build it.  If your OS distribution includes packages for Rust and Cargo, start
 by installing those (for instance, on Debian, `apt install rustc cargo`).
-Otherwise, you can [download the stable version of Rust and Cargo from the
-rust-lang.org download page](https://www.rust-lang.org/downloads.html).
+If your distribution doesn't have packages of Rust and Cargo, or has an
+outdated version (which may result in build errors), you can [download the
+stable version of Rust and Cargo from the rust-lang.org download
+page](https://www.rust-lang.org/downloads.html).
 
 With Rust and Cargo installed, you can download and install the latest release
 of git-series with: