diff --git a/src/mbgl/annotation/annotation_manager.cpp b/src/mbgl/annotation/annotation_manager.cpp
index 374d770a2..e5c55c90d 100644
--- a/src/mbgl/annotation/annotation_manager.cpp
+++ b/src/mbgl/annotation/annotation_manager.cpp
@@ -83,6 +83,9 @@ LatLngBounds AnnotationManager::getBoundsForAnnotations(const AnnotationIDs& ids
 }
 
 std::unique_ptr<AnnotationTile> AnnotationManager::getTile(const TileID& tileID) {
+    if (pointAnnotations.empty() && shapeAnnotations.empty())
+        return nullptr;
+
     auto tile = std::make_unique<AnnotationTile>();
 
     AnnotationTileLayer& pointLayer = *tile->layers.emplace(