diff --git a/pkgs/development/compilers/sdcc/default.nix b/pkgs/development/compilers/sdcc/default.nix
index 584c0e7a6604..5e5a0bee51fc 100644
--- a/pkgs/development/compilers/sdcc/default.nix
+++ b/pkgs/development/compilers/sdcc/default.nix
@@ -15,6 +15,8 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation rec {
     sha256 = "sha256-tJuuHSO81gV6gsT/5WE/nNDLz9HpQOnYTEv+nfCowFM=";
   };
 
+  enableParallelBuilding = true;
+
   buildInputs = [ boost gputils texinfo zlib ];
 
   nativeBuildInputs = [ autoconf bison flex ];