diff --git a/klippy/msgproto.py b/klippy/msgproto.py
index 0fe765934590..25701df36c86 100644
--- a/klippy/msgproto.py
+++ b/klippy/msgproto.py
@@ -324,7 +324,7 @@ def lookup_msgid(self, msgformat):
     def create_command(self, msg):
         parts = msg.strip().split()
         if not parts:
-            return ""
+            return []
         msgname = parts[0]
         mp = self.messages_by_name.get(msgname)
         if mp is None: