diff --git a/Library/Homebrew/formula_installer.rb b/Library/Homebrew/formula_installer.rb
index 0f83751c7e..3859439458 100644
--- a/Library/Homebrew/formula_installer.rb
+++ b/Library/Homebrew/formula_installer.rb
@@ -1163,6 +1163,8 @@ class FormulaInstaller
 
     if pour_bottle?(output_warning: true)
       formula.fetch_bottle_tab
+    elsif Homebrew::EnvConfig.install_from_api?
+      odie "Unable to build #{formula.name} from source with HOMEBREW_INSTALL_FROM_API."
     else
       formula.fetch_patches
       formula.resources.each(&:fetch)