diff --git a/pkgs/development/tools/misc/binutils/default.nix b/pkgs/development/tools/misc/binutils/default.nix
index d8e1d611432..1bb110e35fd 100644
--- a/pkgs/development/tools/misc/binutils/default.nix
+++ b/pkgs/development/tools/misc/binutils/default.nix
@@ -27,6 +27,12 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation rec {
     if test "$noSysDirs" = "1"; then
 	echo 'NATIVE_LIB_DIRS=' >> ld/configure.tgt
     fi
+
+    # Use symlinks instead of hard links to save space ("strip" in the
+    # fixup phase strips each hard link separately).
+    for i in binutils/Makefile.in gas/Makefile.in ld/Makefile.in; do
+        substituteInPlace $i --replace 'ln ' 'ln -s '
+    done
   '';
 
   configureFlags = "--disable-werror" # needed for dietlibc build