diff --git a/dvc/remote/ssh.py b/dvc/remote/ssh.py
index a04f45419e..8c5ebde07e 100644
--- a/dvc/remote/ssh.py
+++ b/dvc/remote/ssh.py
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ def _exec(self, ssh, cmd):
         stderr.close()
 
         if stdout.channel.recv_exit_status() != 0:
-            err = ''.join(stderr_chunks)
+            err = b''.join(stderr_chunks).decode('utf-8')
             msg = 'SSH command \'{}\' failed: {}'.format(cmd, err)
             raise DvcException(msg)