diff --git a/tests/checks/features-qmark1.fish b/tests/checks/features-qmark1.fish
index 73a244331..6643581c1 100644
--- a/tests/checks/features-qmark1.fish
+++ b/tests/checks/features-qmark1.fish
@@ -1,2 +1,3 @@
-#RUN: env %fish --features '' -c 'string match --quiet "??" ab ; echo "qmarkon: $status"'
+# Explicitly overriding HOME/XDG_CONFIG_HOME is only required if not invoking via `make test`
+# RUN: env HOME="$(mktemp -d)" XDG_CONFIG_HOME="$(mktemp -d)" %fish --features '' -c 'string match --quiet "??" ab ; echo "qmarkon: $status"'
 #CHECK: qmarkon: 0
diff --git a/tests/checks/set.fish b/tests/checks/set.fish
index fa1288934..dae4845d1 100644
--- a/tests/checks/set.fish
+++ b/tests/checks/set.fish
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
-# RUN: env FISH=%fish %fish %s
+# Explicitly overriding HOME/XDG_CONFIG_HOME is only required if not invoking via `make test`
+# RUN: env FISH=%fish HOME="$(mktemp -d)" XDG_CONFIG_HOME="$(mktemp -d)" %fish %s
 # Environment variable tests
 
 # Test if variables can be properly set
@@ -802,7 +803,7 @@ function test-function-scope
     #CHECK: $globalvar: set in global scope, unexported, with 1 elements
     #CHECK: $globalvar[1]: |global|
 end
-        
+
 test-function-scope
 echo $funcvar $funcvar2
 # CHECK:
diff --git a/tests/checks/symlinks-not-overwritten.fish b/tests/checks/symlinks-not-overwritten.fish
index 1aec377a6..0a3aa5dac 100644
--- a/tests/checks/symlinks-not-overwritten.fish
+++ b/tests/checks/symlinks-not-overwritten.fish
@@ -1,4 +1,5 @@
-#RUN: %fish -C 'set -g fish %fish' %s
+# Explicitly overriding HOME/XDG_CONFIG_HOME is only required if not invoking via `make test`
+# RUN: env HOME="$(mktemp -d)" XDG_CONFIG_HOME="$(mktemp -d)" %fish -C 'set -g fish %fish' %s
 
 mkdir -p $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/fish