diff --git a/docker/resource_docker_container.go b/docker/resource_docker_container.go
index 8f730399..bed5a403 100644
--- a/docker/resource_docker_container.go
+++ b/docker/resource_docker_container.go
@@ -191,6 +191,13 @@ func resourceDockerContainer() *schema.Resource {
 				Type:     schema.TypeString,
 				Optional: true,
 				ForceNew: true,
+				DiffSuppressFunc: func(k, oldV, newV string, d *schema.ResourceData) bool {
+					// treat "" as a no-op, which is Docker's default behavior
+					if newV == "" {
+						newV = oldV
+					}
+					return oldV == newV
+				},
 			},
 			"remove_volumes": {
 				Type:     schema.TypeBool,