diff --git a/vscode/extension/src/commands/printEnvironment.ts b/vscode/extension/src/commands/printEnvironment.ts
index 41e74e40d3..39fd171bd1 100644
--- a/vscode/extension/src/commands/printEnvironment.ts
+++ b/vscode/extension/src/commands/printEnvironment.ts
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ import * as vscode from 'vscode'
 import { getSqlmeshEnvironment } from '../utilities/sqlmesh/sqlmesh'
 import { isErr } from '@bus/result'
 import { IS_WINDOWS } from '../utilities/isWindows'
+import { printEnvironmentCommand } from '../utilities/shellCommand'
 
 export function printEnvironment() {
   return async () => {
@@ -23,14 +24,9 @@ export function printEnvironment() {
     // Show the terminal
     terminal.show()
 
-    // Run the appropriate command to display environment variables
-    if (IS_WINDOWS) {
-      // On Windows, use 'set' command
-      terminal.sendText('set')
-    } else {
-      // On Unix-like systems, use 'env' command
-      terminal.sendText('env | sort')
-    }
+    // Run the command the user's shell understands, since the terminal is
+    // opened with the default shell rather than a shell we pick
+    terminal.sendText(printEnvironmentCommand(vscode.env.shell, IS_WINDOWS))
 
     // Show a notification
     vscode.window.showInformationMessage(
diff --git a/vscode/extension/src/utilities/shellCommand.test.ts b/vscode/extension/src/utilities/shellCommand.test.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..fa197c38ab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/vscode/extension/src/utilities/shellCommand.test.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,94 @@
+import { describe, it, expect } from 'vitest'
+import { detectShellFamily, printEnvironmentCommand } from './shellCommand'
+
+describe('detectShellFamily', () => {
+  it('should detect fish', () => {
+    expect(detectShellFamily('/usr/bin/fish', false)).toBe('fish')
+    expect(detectShellFamily('/opt/homebrew/bin/fish', false)).toBe('fish')
+  })
+
+  it('should detect POSIX shells', () => {
+    expect(detectShellFamily('/bin/bash', false)).toBe('posix')
+    expect(detectShellFamily('/bin/zsh', false)).toBe('posix')
+    expect(detectShellFamily('/bin/sh', false)).toBe('posix')
+    expect(detectShellFamily('/usr/bin/dash', false)).toBe('posix')
+    expect(detectShellFamily('/usr/bin/ksh', false)).toBe('posix')
+  })
+
+  it('should detect Windows shells, ignoring the executable extension', () => {
+    expect(detectShellFamily('C:\\Windows\\System32\\cmd.exe', true)).toBe(
+      'cmd',
+    )
+    expect(
+      detectShellFamily(
+        'C:\\Windows\\System32\\WindowsPowerShell\\v1.0\\powershell.exe',
+        true,
+      ),
+    ).toBe('powershell')
+    expect(
+      detectShellFamily('C:\\Program Files\\PowerShell\\7\\pwsh.exe', true),
+    ).toBe('powershell')
+  })
+
+  it('should detect a POSIX shell installed on Windows', () => {
+    expect(
+      detectShellFamily('C:\\Program Files\\Git\\bin\\bash.exe', true),
+    ).toBe('posix')
+  })
+
+  it('should accept a bare shell name without a path', () => {
+    expect(detectShellFamily('fish', false)).toBe('fish')
+    expect(detectShellFamily('pwsh', false)).toBe('powershell')
+  })
+
+  it('should ignore the case of the shell name', () => {
+    expect(detectShellFamily('/usr/bin/FISH', false)).toBe('fish')
+    expect(detectShellFamily('C:\\WINDOWS\\SYSTEM32\\CMD.EXE', true)).toBe(
+      'cmd',
+    )
+  })
+
+  it('should fall back on the platform for an unknown shell', () => {
+    expect(detectShellFamily('/usr/bin/elvish', false)).toBe('posix')
+    expect(detectShellFamily('C:\\tools\\elvish.exe', true)).toBe('cmd')
+  })
+
+  it('should fall back on the platform when no shell is reported', () => {
+    expect(detectShellFamily('', false)).toBe('posix')
+    expect(detectShellFamily('', true)).toBe('cmd')
+    expect(detectShellFamily(undefined, false)).toBe('posix')
+    expect(detectShellFamily(undefined, true)).toBe('cmd')
+  })
+})
+
+describe('printEnvironmentCommand', () => {
+  it('should use set in fish', () => {
+    expect(printEnvironmentCommand('/usr/bin/fish', false)).toBe('set')
+  })
+
+  it('should use env | sort in POSIX shells', () => {
+    expect(printEnvironmentCommand('/bin/bash', false)).toBe('env | sort')
+    expect(printEnvironmentCommand('/bin/zsh', false)).toBe('env | sort')
+    expect(printEnvironmentCommand('/bin/sh', false)).toBe('env | sort')
+  })
+
+  it('should use set in cmd', () => {
+    expect(
+      printEnvironmentCommand('C:\\Windows\\System32\\cmd.exe', true),
+    ).toBe('set')
+  })
+
+  it('should not use set in PowerShell, where it prompts for a variable name', () => {
+    expect(
+      printEnvironmentCommand(
+        'C:\\Program Files\\PowerShell\\7\\pwsh.exe',
+        true,
+      ),
+    ).toBe('Get-ChildItem Env: | Sort-Object Name')
+  })
+
+  it('should keep the previous behaviour when the shell is unknown', () => {
+    expect(printEnvironmentCommand(undefined, false)).toBe('env | sort')
+    expect(printEnvironmentCommand(undefined, true)).toBe('set')
+  })
+})
diff --git a/vscode/extension/src/utilities/shellCommand.ts b/vscode/extension/src/utilities/shellCommand.ts
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..296c2482ed
--- /dev/null
+++ b/vscode/extension/src/utilities/shellCommand.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,73 @@
+/**
+ * The shell families we know how to print environment variables in.
+ */
+export type ShellFamily = 'fish' | 'powershell' | 'cmd' | 'posix'
+
+/**
+ * Commands that list the environment variables of the current shell, one per
+ * shell family.
+ */
+const PRINT_ENVIRONMENT_COMMANDS: Record<ShellFamily, string> = {
+  fish: 'set',
+  powershell: 'Get-ChildItem Env: | Sort-Object Name',
+  cmd: 'set',
+  posix: 'env | sort',
+}
+
+const SHELL_FAMILIES_BY_NAME: Record<string, ShellFamily> = {
+  fish: 'fish',
+  powershell: 'powershell',
+  pwsh: 'powershell',
+  cmd: 'cmd',
+  bash: 'posix',
+  zsh: 'posix',
+  sh: 'posix',
+  dash: 'posix',
+  ksh: 'posix',
+  ash: 'posix',
+}
+
+/**
+ * Extracts the executable name from a shell path, which may use either
+ * separator and may carry a Windows executable extension.
+ */
+const shellName = (shellPath: string): string => {
+  const base = shellPath.split(/[\\/]/).pop() ?? ''
+  return base.toLowerCase().replace(/\.exe$/, '')
+}
+
+/**
+ * Resolves a shell path to the family whose syntax it accepts.
+ *
+ * Unrecognized shells fall back on the platform default, which keeps POSIX
+ * shells we have not listed working.
+ *
+ * @param shellPath The path reported by `vscode.env.shell`, which is empty in
+ * environments without a shell
+ * @param isWindows Whether the extension host runs on Windows
+ */
+export const detectShellFamily = (
+  shellPath: string | undefined,
+  isWindows: boolean,
+): ShellFamily => {
+  const family = shellPath
+    ? SHELL_FAMILIES_BY_NAME[shellName(shellPath)]
+    : undefined
+  if (family) {
+    return family
+  }
+  return isWindows ? 'cmd' : 'posix'
+}
+
+/**
+ * Returns the command that prints all environment variables in the given
+ * shell.
+ *
+ * @param shellPath The path reported by `vscode.env.shell`, which is empty in
+ * environments without a shell
+ * @param isWindows Whether the extension host runs on Windows
+ */
+export const printEnvironmentCommand = (
+  shellPath: string | undefined,
+  isWindows: boolean,
+): string => PRINT_ENVIRONMENT_COMMANDS[detectShellFamily(shellPath, isWindows)]