diff --git a/app/soapbox/schemas/account.ts b/app/soapbox/schemas/account.ts
index 9381edbbd..51202d2e6 100644
--- a/app/soapbox/schemas/account.ts
+++ b/app/soapbox/schemas/account.ts
@@ -5,7 +5,7 @@ import emojify from 'soapbox/features/emoji';
 
 import { customEmojiSchema } from './custom-emoji';
 import { relationshipSchema } from './relationship';
-import { filteredArray, makeCustomEmojiMap } from './utils';
+import { contentSchema, filteredArray, makeCustomEmojiMap } from './utils';
 
 const avatarMissing = require('assets/images/avatar-missing.png');
 const headerMissing = require('assets/images/header-missing.png');
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ const accountSchema = z.object({
     z.string(),
     z.null(),
   ]).catch(null),
-  note: z.string().catch(''),
+  note: contentSchema,
   pleroma: z.any(), // TODO
   source: z.any(), // TODO
   statuses_count: z.number().catch(0),
diff --git a/app/soapbox/schemas/chat-message.ts b/app/soapbox/schemas/chat-message.ts
index 121ef9d5f..fe0ff0f6b 100644
--- a/app/soapbox/schemas/chat-message.ts
+++ b/app/soapbox/schemas/chat-message.ts
@@ -3,14 +3,14 @@ import { z } from 'zod';
 import { attachmentSchema } from './attachment';
 import { cardSchema } from './card';
 import { customEmojiSchema } from './custom-emoji';
-import { emojiSchema, filteredArray } from './utils';
+import { contentSchema, emojiSchema, filteredArray } from './utils';
 
 const chatMessageSchema = z.object({
   account_id: z.string(),
   media_attachments: filteredArray(attachmentSchema),
   card: cardSchema.nullable().catch(null),
   chat_id: z.string(),
-  content: z.string().catch(''),
+  content: contentSchema,
   created_at: z.string().datetime().catch(new Date().toUTCString()),
   emojis: filteredArray(customEmojiSchema),
   expiration: z.number().optional().catch(undefined),
diff --git a/app/soapbox/schemas/utils.ts b/app/soapbox/schemas/utils.ts
index 1e53e11aa..b64185800 100644
--- a/app/soapbox/schemas/utils.ts
+++ b/app/soapbox/schemas/utils.ts
@@ -2,6 +2,9 @@ import z from 'zod';
 
 import type { CustomEmoji } from './custom-emoji';
 
+/** Ensure HTML content is a string, and drop empty `<p>` tags. */
+const contentSchema = z.string().catch('').transform((value) => value === '<p></p>' ? '' : value);
+
 /** Validates individual items in an array, dropping any that aren't valid. */
 function filteredArray<T extends z.ZodTypeAny>(schema: T) {
   return z.any().array().catch([])
@@ -24,4 +27,4 @@ function makeCustomEmojiMap(customEmojis: CustomEmoji[]) {
   }, {});
 }
 
-export { filteredArray, makeCustomEmojiMap, emojiSchema };
\ No newline at end of file
+export { filteredArray, makeCustomEmojiMap, emojiSchema, contentSchema };
\ No newline at end of file