diff --git a/crates/ledger-host/tests/books_home.rs b/crates/ledger-host/tests/books_home.rs
index 8556d01..acb9374 100644
--- a/crates/ledger-host/tests/books_home.rs
+++ b/crates/ledger-host/tests/books_home.rs
@@ -15,7 +15,13 @@ fn names(dir: &Path) -> Vec<String> {
             if p.is_dir() {
                 walk(base, &p, out);
             } else {
-                out.push(p.strip_prefix(base).unwrap().to_string_lossy().into_owned());
+                // One spelling on every OS (Windows walks with backslashes).
+                out.push(
+                    p.strip_prefix(base)
+                        .unwrap()
+                        .to_string_lossy()
+                        .replace('\\', "/"),
+                );
             }
         }
     }
diff --git a/crates/ledger-store/src/root.rs b/crates/ledger-store/src/root.rs
index 6a114b6..029b342 100644
--- a/crates/ledger-store/src/root.rs
+++ b/crates/ledger-store/src/root.rs
@@ -512,7 +512,12 @@ impl Root {
         chosen: Option<&Path>,
         xdg_data_home: Option<&Path>,
     ) -> Result<(Self, SetupReport), RootError> {
-        let default = default_root(home);
+        // The default as the system spells it, since a chosen root is
+        // resolved that way too: on macOS `/tmp` is `/private/tmp`, and a
+        // root chosen at the default must read as the default (so the
+        // record goes), not as somewhere else.
+        let default =
+            default_root(&std::fs::canonicalize(home).unwrap_or_else(|_| home.to_path_buf()));
         let recorded = recorded_root(home)?;
         let current = recorded.clone().unwrap_or_else(|| default.clone());
         let path = match (chosen, &recorded, xdg_data_home) {
diff --git a/crates/ledger-store/tests/root.rs b/crates/ledger-store/tests/root.rs
index 6d587f6..079fb9f 100644
--- a/crates/ledger-store/tests/root.rs
+++ b/crates/ledger-store/tests/root.rs
@@ -156,11 +156,14 @@ fn the_root_is_found_without_the_environment() {
         default_root(home.path()),
         platform_data_dir(home.path()).join("wanderbooks")
     );
-    // An explicit root wins.
+    // An explicit root wins (answered as the system spells it: macOS
+    // keeps /tmp as /private/tmp).
     let elsewhere = home.path().join("elsewhere");
     assert_eq!(
         Root::locate(home.path(), Some(&elsewhere)).unwrap(),
-        elsewhere
+        std::fs::canonicalize(home.path())
+            .unwrap()
+            .join("elsewhere")
     );
     // A recorded root is used when none is given.
     std::fs::create_dir_all(platform_data_dir(home.path())).unwrap();
@@ -211,7 +214,10 @@ fn setup_records_a_root_chosen_elsewhere_and_forgets_it_when_back_to_default() {
     assert_eq!(Root::find_in(home.path(), None).unwrap().path(), chosen);
     // Back to the default (it holds no books): the record goes.
     let (root, report) = Root::setup(home.path(), Some(&default_root(home.path())), None).unwrap();
-    assert_eq!(root.path(), default_root(home.path()));
+    assert_eq!(
+        root.path(),
+        default_root(&std::fs::canonicalize(home.path()).unwrap())
+    );
     assert!(!report.recorded && !pointer.exists());
 
     // $XDG_DATA_HOME is honoured at setup, when nothing is recorded, and