diff --git a/app/Http/Controllers/StatusController.php b/app/Http/Controllers/StatusController.php
index e18081969..3031d73cd 100644
--- a/app/Http/Controllers/StatusController.php
+++ b/app/Http/Controllers/StatusController.php
@@ -110,7 +110,7 @@ class StatusController extends Controller
 
         $this->validate($request, [
           'photo.*'      => 'required|mimetypes:' . config('pixelfed.media_types').'|max:' . config('pixelfed.max_photo_size'),
-          'caption'      => 'string|max:'.config('pixelfed.max_caption_length'),
+          'caption'      => 'nullable|string|max:'.config('pixelfed.max_caption_length'),
           'cw'           => 'nullable|string',
           'filter_class' => 'nullable|string',
           'filter_name'  => 'nullable|string',