diff --git a/.changeset/jetbrains-shell-env-path.md b/.changeset/jetbrains-shell-env-path.md
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..8af2da43207
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.changeset/jetbrains-shell-env-path.md
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+---
+"@kilocode/kilo-jetbrains": patch
+---
+
+Fix the JetBrains plugin finding shell-installed tools like bun and gh when launched from Finder or Dock.
diff --git a/packages/kilo-jetbrains/backend/src/main/kotlin/ai/kilocode/backend/cli/KiloBackendCliManager.kt b/packages/kilo-jetbrains/backend/src/main/kotlin/ai/kilocode/backend/cli/KiloBackendCliManager.kt
index fe8dcb992cc..301142da9f7 100644
--- a/packages/kilo-jetbrains/backend/src/main/kotlin/ai/kilocode/backend/cli/KiloBackendCliManager.kt
+++ b/packages/kilo-jetbrains/backend/src/main/kotlin/ai/kilocode/backend/cli/KiloBackendCliManager.kt
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ import ai.kilocode.backend.dev.KiloDevMode
 import ai.kilocode.log.KiloLog
 import com.intellij.openapi.application.ApplicationInfo
 import com.intellij.openapi.application.PathManager
+import com.intellij.util.EnvironmentUtil
 import kotlinx.coroutines.Dispatchers
 import kotlinx.coroutines.withContext
 import kotlinx.coroutines.withTimeout
@@ -91,7 +92,7 @@ class KiloBackendCliManager(
     }
 
     // Must be called from a background thread — devStorageEnv() performs blocking I/O (mkdirs).
-    internal fun buildEnv(pwd: String, base: Map<String, String> = System.getenv()): Map<String, String> =
+    internal fun buildEnv(pwd: String, base: Map<String, String> = EnvironmentUtil.getEnvironmentMap()): Map<String, String> =
         buildKiloCliEnv(pwd, base, log)
 
     private suspend fun spawn(cli: File): CliServer.State =
@@ -238,7 +239,7 @@ private const val DEFAULT_CONFIG = """{"permission":{"edit":"ask","bash":"ask"}}
 // Must be called from a background thread — devStorageEnv() performs blocking I/O (mkdirs).
 internal fun buildKiloCliEnv(
     pwd: String,
-    base: Map<String, String> = System.getenv(),
+    base: Map<String, String> = EnvironmentUtil.getEnvironmentMap(),
     log: KiloLog = KiloLog.create(KiloBackendCliManager::class.java),
 ): Map<String, String> = buildMap {
     putAll(base)
diff --git a/packages/kilo-jetbrains/backend/src/test/kotlin/ai/kilocode/backend/cli/KiloBackendCliManagerEnvTest.kt b/packages/kilo-jetbrains/backend/src/test/kotlin/ai/kilocode/backend/cli/KiloBackendCliManagerEnvTest.kt
index 339dc9542d0..9024ce35614 100644
--- a/packages/kilo-jetbrains/backend/src/test/kotlin/ai/kilocode/backend/cli/KiloBackendCliManagerEnvTest.kt
+++ b/packages/kilo-jetbrains/backend/src/test/kotlin/ai/kilocode/backend/cli/KiloBackendCliManagerEnvTest.kt
@@ -79,6 +79,15 @@ class KiloBackendCliManagerEnvTest {
         assertEquals(cfg, env["KILO_CONFIG_CONTENT"])
     }
 
+    @Test
+    fun `isolation disabled - base PATH is preserved`() {
+        val path = "/opt/homebrew/bin:/usr/bin"
+
+        val env = manager.buildEnv("pwd123", mapOf("PATH" to path))
+
+        assertEquals(path, env["PATH"])
+    }
+
     @Test
     fun `isolation disabled - no XDG storage overrides are injected`() {
         val env = manager.buildEnv("pwd123", emptyMap())