diff --git a/plugin/src/main/kotlin/com/nishtahir/CargoBuildTask.kt b/plugin/src/main/kotlin/com/nishtahir/CargoBuildTask.kt
index 3add0bd..c3bb9fd 100644
--- a/plugin/src/main/kotlin/com/nishtahir/CargoBuildTask.kt
+++ b/plugin/src/main/kotlin/com/nishtahir/CargoBuildTask.kt
@@ -9,6 +9,8 @@ import org.gradle.api.logging.LogLevel
 import org.gradle.api.tasks.TaskAction
 import java.io.ByteArrayOutputStream
 import java.io.File
+import java.nio.file.Files
+import java.nio.file.Paths
 
 open class CargoBuildTask : DefaultTask() {
     var toolchain: Toolchain? = null
@@ -42,6 +44,10 @@ open class CargoBuildTask : DefaultTask() {
                 ?: targetDirectory
                 ?: "${module!!}/target"
 
+            if (!Files.exists(Paths.get(targetDirectory))) {
+                throw GradleException("Cargo target directory (`${targetDirectory}`) does not exists. If you're using a Cargo Workspace, you need to specify the target directory in `build.gradle` or `local.properties` (see https://github.com/mozilla/rust-android-gradle#targetdirectory).")
+            }
+
             val defaultTargetTriple = getDefaultTargetTriple(project, rustcCommand)
 
             val cargoOutputDir = if (toolchain.target == defaultTargetTriple) {