diff --git a/help.c b/help.c
index 6e28ad9e71..8143dcdd38 100644
--- a/help.c
+++ b/help.c
@@ -39,12 +39,8 @@ static void parse_help_format(const char *format)
 
 static int git_help_config(const char *var, const char *value)
 {
-	if (!strcmp(var, "help.format")) {
-		if (!value)
-			return config_error_nonbool(var);
-		help_default_format = xstrdup(value);
-		return 0;
-	}
+	if (!strcmp(var, "help.format"))
+		return git_config_string(&help_default_format, var, value);
 	return git_default_config(var, value);
 }