diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes
index 2d6ae1c1bb..4142711b3c 100644
--- a/.gitattributes
+++ b/.gitattributes
@@ -1,2 +1,5 @@
 * text=auto
 *.mdx -linguist-detectable
+
+# Keep LF line endings in testdata for consistent checksums across platforms
+testdata/** text eol=lf
diff --git a/.github/workflows/test.yml b/.github/workflows/test.yml
index 9174b0a28a..d03fb1c466 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/test.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/test.yml
@@ -12,27 +12,19 @@ jobs:
   test:
     name: Test
     strategy:
+      fail-fast: false
       matrix:
         go-version: [1.24.x, 1.25.x]
         platform: [ubuntu-latest, macos-latest, windows-latest]
     runs-on: ${{matrix.platform}}
     steps:
+      - name: Check out code
+        uses: actions/checkout@v6
+
       - name: Set up Go ${{matrix.go-version}}
         uses: actions/setup-go@v6
         with:
           go-version: ${{matrix.go-version}}
-        id: go
-
-      - name: Check out code into the Go module directory
-        uses: actions/checkout@v6
-
-      - name: Download Go modules
-        run: go mod download
-        env:
-          GOPROXY: https://proxy.golang.org
-
-      - name: Build
-        run: go build -o ./bin/task -v ./cmd/task
 
       - name: Test
-        run: ./bin/task test --output=group --output-group-begin='::group::{{.TASK}}' --output-group-end='::endgroup::'
+        run: go run ./cmd/task test
diff --git a/compiler.go b/compiler.go
index 311fd58423..733d5f3b21 100644
--- a/compiler.go
+++ b/compiler.go
@@ -198,18 +198,21 @@ func (c *Compiler) ResetCache() {
 }
 
 func (c *Compiler) getSpecialVars(t *ast.Task, call *Call) (map[string]string, error) {
+	// Use filepath.ToSlash for all paths to ensure consistent forward slashes
+	// across platforms. This prevents issues with backslashes being interpreted
+	// as escape sequences when paths are used in shell commands on Windows.
 	allVars := map[string]string{
 		"TASK_EXE":         filepath.ToSlash(os.Args[0]),
-		"ROOT_TASKFILE":    filepathext.SmartJoin(c.Dir, c.Entrypoint),
-		"ROOT_DIR":         c.Dir,
-		"USER_WORKING_DIR": c.UserWorkingDir,
+		"ROOT_TASKFILE":    filepath.ToSlash(filepathext.SmartJoin(c.Dir, c.Entrypoint)),
+		"ROOT_DIR":         filepath.ToSlash(c.Dir),
+		"USER_WORKING_DIR": filepath.ToSlash(c.UserWorkingDir),
 		"TASK_VERSION":     version.GetVersion(),
 	}
 	if t != nil {
 		allVars["TASK"] = t.Task
-		allVars["TASK_DIR"] = filepathext.SmartJoin(c.Dir, t.Dir)
-		allVars["TASKFILE"] = t.Location.Taskfile
-		allVars["TASKFILE_DIR"] = filepath.Dir(t.Location.Taskfile)
+		allVars["TASK_DIR"] = filepath.ToSlash(filepathext.SmartJoin(c.Dir, t.Dir))
+		allVars["TASKFILE"] = filepath.ToSlash(t.Location.Taskfile)
+		allVars["TASKFILE_DIR"] = filepath.ToSlash(filepath.Dir(t.Location.Taskfile))
 	} else {
 		allVars["TASK"] = ""
 		allVars["TASK_DIR"] = ""
diff --git a/errors/errors_taskfile.go b/errors/errors_taskfile.go
index ad665d29f8..6fbaefb53e 100644
--- a/errors/errors_taskfile.go
+++ b/errors/errors_taskfile.go
@@ -3,6 +3,7 @@ package errors
 import (
 	"fmt"
 	"net/http"
+	"path/filepath"
 	"time"
 
 	"github.com/Masterminds/semver/v3"
@@ -24,7 +25,7 @@ func (err TaskfileNotFoundError) Error() string {
 	if err.AskInit {
 		walkText += " Run `task --init` to create a new Taskfile."
 	}
-	return fmt.Sprintf(`task: No Taskfile found at %q%s`, err.URI, walkText)
+	return fmt.Sprintf(`task: No Taskfile found at %q%s`, filepath.ToSlash(err.URI), walkText)
 }
 
 func (err TaskfileNotFoundError) Code() int {
@@ -51,7 +52,7 @@ type TaskfileInvalidError struct {
 }
 
 func (err TaskfileInvalidError) Error() string {
-	return fmt.Sprintf("task: Failed to parse %s:\n%v", err.URI, err.Err)
+	return fmt.Sprintf("task: Failed to parse %s:\n%v", filepath.ToSlash(err.URI), err.Err)
 }
 
 func (err TaskfileInvalidError) Code() int {
@@ -70,7 +71,7 @@ func (err TaskfileFetchFailedError) Error() string {
 	if err.HTTPStatusCode != 0 {
 		statusText = fmt.Sprintf(" with status code %d (%s)", err.HTTPStatusCode, http.StatusText(err.HTTPStatusCode))
 	}
-	return fmt.Sprintf(`task: Download of %q failed%s`, err.URI, statusText)
+	return fmt.Sprintf(`task: Download of %q failed%s`, filepath.ToSlash(err.URI), statusText)
 }
 
 func (err TaskfileFetchFailedError) Code() int {
@@ -86,7 +87,7 @@ type TaskfileNotTrustedError struct {
 func (err *TaskfileNotTrustedError) Error() string {
 	return fmt.Sprintf(
 		`task: Taskfile %q not trusted by user`,
-		err.URI,
+		filepath.ToSlash(err.URI),
 	)
 }
 
@@ -103,7 +104,7 @@ type TaskfileNotSecureError struct {
 func (err *TaskfileNotSecureError) Error() string {
 	return fmt.Sprintf(
 		`task: Taskfile %q cannot be downloaded over an insecure connection. You can override this by using the --insecure flag`,
-		err.URI,
+		filepath.ToSlash(err.URI),
 	)
 }
 
@@ -120,7 +121,7 @@ type TaskfileCacheNotFoundError struct {
 func (err *TaskfileCacheNotFoundError) Error() string {
 	return fmt.Sprintf(
 		`task: Taskfile %q was not found in the cache. Remove the --offline flag to use a remote copy or download it using the --download flag`,
-		err.URI,
+		filepath.ToSlash(err.URI),
 	)
 }
 
@@ -141,12 +142,12 @@ func (err *TaskfileVersionCheckError) Error() string {
 	if err.SchemaVersion == nil {
 		return fmt.Sprintf(
 			`task: Missing schema version in Taskfile %q`,
-			err.URI,
+			filepath.ToSlash(err.URI),
 		)
 	}
 	return fmt.Sprintf(
 		"task: Invalid schema version in Taskfile %q:\nSchema version (%s) %s",
-		err.URI,
+		filepath.ToSlash(err.URI),
 		err.SchemaVersion.String(),
 		err.Message,
 	)
@@ -166,7 +167,7 @@ type TaskfileNetworkTimeoutError struct {
 func (err *TaskfileNetworkTimeoutError) Error() string {
 	return fmt.Sprintf(
 		`task: Network connection timed out after %s while attempting to download Taskfile %q`,
-		err.Timeout, err.URI,
+		err.Timeout, filepath.ToSlash(err.URI),
 	)
 }
 
@@ -183,8 +184,8 @@ type TaskfileCycleError struct {
 
 func (err TaskfileCycleError) Error() string {
 	return fmt.Sprintf("task: include cycle detected between %s <--> %s",
-		err.Source,
-		err.Destination,
+		filepath.ToSlash(err.Source),
+		filepath.ToSlash(err.Destination),
 	)
 }
 
@@ -203,7 +204,7 @@ type TaskfileDoesNotMatchChecksum struct {
 func (err *TaskfileDoesNotMatchChecksum) Error() string {
 	return fmt.Sprintf(
 		"task: The checksum of the Taskfile at %q does not match!\ngot: %q\nwant: %q",
-		err.URI,
+		filepath.ToSlash(err.URI),
 		err.ActualChecksum,
 		err.ExpectedChecksum,
 	)
diff --git a/executor_test.go b/executor_test.go
index 6e3ff3e1ec..f72104a6dc 100644
--- a/executor_test.go
+++ b/executor_test.go
@@ -165,6 +165,7 @@ func (tt *ExecutorTest) run(t *testing.T) {
 		// Create a golden fixture file for the output
 		g := goldie.New(t,
 			goldie.WithFixtureDir(filepath.Join(e.Dir, "testdata")),
+			goldie.WithEqualFn(NormalizedEqual),
 		)
 
 		// Call setup and check for errors
diff --git a/formatter_test.go b/formatter_test.go
index 7221ff769e..b92c8d5579 100644
--- a/formatter_test.go
+++ b/formatter_test.go
@@ -127,6 +127,7 @@ func (tt *FormatterTest) run(t *testing.T) {
 		// Create a golden fixture file for the output
 		g := goldie.New(t,
 			goldie.WithFixtureDir(filepath.Join(e.Dir, "testdata")),
+			goldie.WithEqualFn(NormalizedEqual),
 		)
 
 		// Call setup and check for errors
diff --git a/internal/fingerprint/glob.go b/internal/fingerprint/glob.go
index bf12afdd12..fd3cafceaa 100644
--- a/internal/fingerprint/glob.go
+++ b/internal/fingerprint/glob.go
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@ package fingerprint
 
 import (
 	"os"
+	"path/filepath"
 	"sort"
 
 	"github.com/go-task/task/v3/internal/execext"
@@ -50,7 +51,8 @@ func collectKeys(m map[string]bool) []string {
 	keys := make([]string, 0, len(m))
 	for k, v := range m {
 		if v {
-			keys = append(keys, k)
+			// Normalize path separators for consistent sorting across platforms
+			keys = append(keys, filepath.ToSlash(k))
 		}
 	}
 	sort.Strings(keys)
diff --git a/task_test.go b/task_test.go
index 9d54af9740..a09e496f8b 100644
--- a/task_test.go
+++ b/task_test.go
@@ -88,13 +88,14 @@ func (tt *TaskTest) writeFixture(
 	if tt.fixtureTemplatingEnabled {
 		fixtureTemplateData := map[string]any{
 			"TEST_NAME": t.Name(),
-			"TEST_DIR":  wd,
+			"TEST_DIR":  filepath.ToSlash(wd),
 		}
 		// If the test has additional template data, copy it into the map
 		if tt.fixtureTemplateData != nil {
 			maps.Copy(fixtureTemplateData, tt.fixtureTemplateData)
 		}
-		g.AssertWithTemplate(t, goldenFileName, fixtureTemplateData, b)
+		// Normalize output before comparison (CRLF→LF, backslash→forward slash)
+		g.AssertWithTemplate(t, goldenFileName, fixtureTemplateData, normalizeOutput(b))
 	} else {
 		g.Assert(t, goldenFileName, b)
 	}
@@ -308,6 +309,73 @@ func PPSortedLines(t *testing.T, b []byte) []byte {
 	return []byte(strings.Join(lines, "\n") + "\n")
 }
 
+// normalizeOutput normalizes cross-platform differences for byte slice comparison:
+// - Converts CRLF and CR to LF (line endings)
+// - Converts backslashes to forward slashes (Windows paths)
+// - Handles escaped backslashes in JSON (\\) by converting to single forward slash
+func normalizeOutput(b []byte) []byte {
+	b = bytes.ReplaceAll(b, []byte("\r\n"), []byte("\n"))
+	b = bytes.ReplaceAll(b, []byte("\r"), []byte("\n"))
+	// First replace escaped backslashes (common in JSON), then single backslashes
+	b = bytes.ReplaceAll(b, []byte("\\\\"), []byte("/"))
+	b = bytes.ReplaceAll(b, []byte("\\"), []byte("/"))
+	return b
+}
+
+// normalizePathSeparators converts backslashes to forward slashes for cross-platform path comparison.
+func normalizePathSeparators(s string) string {
+	return strings.ReplaceAll(s, "\\", "/")
+}
+
+// NormalizedEqual compares two byte slices after normalizing output.
+// This is used as a custom goldie.EqualFn for cross-platform golden file tests.
+func NormalizedEqual(actual, expected []byte) bool {
+	return bytes.Equal(normalizeOutput(actual), normalizeOutput(expected))
+}
+
+func TestNormalizeOutput(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	tests := []struct {
+		name     string
+		input    []byte
+		expected []byte
+	}{
+		{"CRLF to LF", []byte("line1\r\nline2\r\n"), []byte("line1\nline2\n")},
+		{"CR to LF", []byte("line1\rline2\r"), []byte("line1\nline2\n")},
+		{"Windows path", []byte(`D:\a\task\task`), []byte(`D:/a/task/task`)},
+		{"JSON escaped backslash", []byte(`{"path":"D:\\a\\task"}`), []byte(`{"path":"D:/a/task"}`)},
+		{"Mixed", []byte("D:\\a\\task\r\n"), []byte("D:/a/task\n")},
+		{"Unix path unchanged", []byte("/home/user/task\n"), []byte("/home/user/task\n")},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+			got := normalizeOutput(tt.input)
+			assert.Equal(t, tt.expected, got)
+		})
+	}
+}
+
+func TestNormalizePathSeparators(t *testing.T) {
+	t.Parallel()
+	tests := []struct {
+		name     string
+		input    string
+		expected string
+	}{
+		{"Windows path", `D:\a\task\task`, `D:/a/task/task`},
+		{"Unix path unchanged", `/home/user/task`, `/home/user/task`},
+		{"Mixed separators", `C:\Users/name\file`, `C:/Users/name/file`},
+	}
+	for _, tt := range tests {
+		t.Run(tt.name, func(t *testing.T) {
+			t.Parallel()
+			got := normalizePathSeparators(tt.input)
+			assert.Equal(t, tt.expected, got)
+		})
+	}
+}
+
 // SyncBuffer is a threadsafe buffer for testing.
 // Some times replace stdout/stderr with a buffer to capture output.
 // stdout and stderr are threadsafe, but a regular bytes.Buffer is not.
@@ -1078,7 +1146,7 @@ func TestIncludesOptionalImplicitFalse(t *testing.T) {
 	wd, _ := os.Getwd()
 
 	message := "task: No Taskfile found at \"%s/%s/TaskfileOptional.yml\""
-	expected := fmt.Sprintf(message, wd, dir)
+	expected := fmt.Sprintf(message, filepath.ToSlash(wd), dir)
 
 	e := task.NewExecutor(
 		task.WithDir(dir),
@@ -1098,7 +1166,7 @@ func TestIncludesOptionalExplicitFalse(t *testing.T) {
 	wd, _ := os.Getwd()
 
 	message := "task: No Taskfile found at \"%s/%s/TaskfileOptional.yml\""
-	expected := fmt.Sprintf(message, wd, dir)
+	expected := fmt.Sprintf(message, filepath.ToSlash(wd), dir)
 
 	e := task.NewExecutor(
 		task.WithDir(dir),
@@ -1146,11 +1214,11 @@ func TestIncludesRelativePath(t *testing.T) {
 	require.NoError(t, e.Setup())
 
 	require.NoError(t, e.Run(t.Context(), &task.Call{Task: "common:pwd"}))
-	assert.Contains(t, buff.String(), "testdata/includes_rel_path/common")
+	assert.Contains(t, filepath.ToSlash(buff.String()), "testdata/includes_rel_path/common")
 
 	buff.Reset()
 	require.NoError(t, e.Run(t.Context(), &task.Call{Task: "included:common:pwd"}))
-	assert.Contains(t, buff.String(), "testdata/includes_rel_path/common")
+	assert.Contains(t, filepath.ToSlash(buff.String()), "testdata/includes_rel_path/common")
 }
 
 func TestIncludesInternal(t *testing.T) {
@@ -1328,7 +1396,7 @@ func TestIncludedTaskfileVarMerging(t *testing.T) {
 
 			err := e.Run(t.Context(), &task.Call{Task: test.task})
 			require.NoError(t, err)
-			assert.Contains(t, buff.String(), test.expectedOutput)
+			assert.Contains(t, filepath.ToSlash(buff.String()), test.expectedOutput)
 		})
 	}
 }
@@ -1475,7 +1543,9 @@ func TestWhenNoDirAttributeItRunsInSameDirAsTaskfile(t *testing.T) {
 	require.NoError(t, e.Run(t.Context(), &task.Call{Task: "whereami"}))
 
 	// got should be the "dir" part of "testdata/dir"
-	got := strings.TrimSuffix(filepath.Base(out.String()), "\n")
+	// Normalize path separators for cross-platform compatibility (Windows uses backslashes)
+	normalized := normalizePathSeparators(out.String())
+	got := strings.TrimSuffix(filepath.Base(normalized), "\n")
 	assert.Equal(t, expected, got, "Mismatch in the working directory")
 }
 
@@ -1494,7 +1564,9 @@ func TestWhenDirAttributeAndDirExistsItRunsInThatDir(t *testing.T) {
 	require.NoError(t, e.Setup())
 	require.NoError(t, e.Run(t.Context(), &task.Call{Task: "whereami"}))
 
-	got := strings.TrimSuffix(filepath.Base(out.String()), "\n")
+	// Normalize path separators for cross-platform compatibility (Windows uses backslashes)
+	normalized := normalizePathSeparators(out.String())
+	got := strings.TrimSuffix(filepath.Base(normalized), "\n")
 	assert.Equal(t, expected, got, "Mismatch in the working directory")
 }
 
@@ -1520,7 +1592,9 @@ func TestWhenDirAttributeItCreatesMissingAndRunsInThatDir(t *testing.T) {
 	require.NoError(t, e.Setup())
 	require.NoError(t, e.Run(t.Context(), &task.Call{Task: target}))
 
-	got := strings.TrimSuffix(filepath.Base(out.String()), "\n")
+	// Normalize path separators for cross-platform compatibility (Windows uses backslashes)
+	normalized := normalizePathSeparators(out.String())
+	got := strings.TrimSuffix(filepath.Base(normalized), "\n")
 	assert.Equal(t, expected, got, "Mismatch in the working directory")
 
 	// Clean-up after ourselves only if no error.
@@ -1549,7 +1623,11 @@ func TestDynamicVariablesRunOnTheNewCreatedDir(t *testing.T) {
 	require.NoError(t, e.Setup())
 	require.NoError(t, e.Run(t.Context(), &task.Call{Task: target}))
 
-	got := strings.TrimSuffix(filepath.Base(out.String()), "\n")
+	// Normalize path separators for cross-platform compatibility (Windows uses backslashes)
+	// Take only the first line as Windows may output additional debug info
+	normalized := normalizePathSeparators(out.String())
+	firstLine := strings.Split(normalized, "\n")[0]
+	got := filepath.Base(firstLine)
 	assert.Equal(t, expected, got, "Mismatch in the working directory")
 
 	// Clean-up after ourselves only if no error.
@@ -2268,7 +2346,8 @@ func TestUserWorkingDirectory(t *testing.T) {
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 	require.NoError(t, e.Setup())
 	require.NoError(t, e.Run(t.Context(), &task.Call{Task: "default"}))
-	assert.Equal(t, fmt.Sprintf("%s\n", wd), buff.String())
+	// Use filepath.ToSlash because USER_WORKING_DIR uses forward slashes on all platforms
+	assert.Equal(t, fmt.Sprintf("%s\n", filepath.ToSlash(wd)), buff.String())
 }
 
 func TestUserWorkingDirectoryWithIncluded(t *testing.T) {
@@ -2277,7 +2356,7 @@ func TestUserWorkingDirectoryWithIncluded(t *testing.T) {
 	wd, err := os.Getwd()
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 
-	wd = filepathext.SmartJoin(wd, "testdata/user_working_dir_with_includes/somedir")
+	wd = filepath.ToSlash(filepathext.SmartJoin(wd, "testdata/user_working_dir_with_includes/somedir"))
 
 	var buff bytes.Buffer
 	e := task.NewExecutor(
@@ -2290,7 +2369,8 @@ func TestUserWorkingDirectoryWithIncluded(t *testing.T) {
 	require.NoError(t, err)
 	require.NoError(t, e.Setup())
 	require.NoError(t, e.Run(t.Context(), &task.Call{Task: "included:echo"}))
-	assert.Equal(t, fmt.Sprintf("%s\n", wd), buff.String())
+	// Normalize path separators for cross-platform compatibility (Windows uses backslashes)
+	assert.Equal(t, fmt.Sprintf("%s\n", wd), normalizePathSeparators(buff.String()))
 }
 
 func TestPlatforms(t *testing.T) {