diff --git a/doc/user/tools.rst b/doc/user/tools.rst
index dcb1e7c9..ac4843eb 100644
--- a/doc/user/tools.rst
+++ b/doc/user/tools.rst
@@ -297,10 +297,11 @@ the event log is kept as short as possible.
 
 For bugs that are difficult to reproduce use
 ``libinput record --autorestart=2 --output-file=recording.yml``.
-All events will be recorded to a file named
-``recording.yml.<current-date-and-time>`` and whenever the device does not
-send events for 2 seconds, a new file is created. This helps to keep
-individual recordings short.
+The tool will wait for device activity before creating an output file.
+Once events are received, they are recorded to a file named
+``recording.yml.<current-date-and-time>``. Whenever the device does not
+send events for 2 seconds, the current file is closed and a new file is
+created once the device sends events again.
 
 To use the ``--autorestart`` option correctly:
 
diff --git a/tools/libinput-record.c b/tools/libinput-record.c
index a957f45e..ec4dfe0a 100644
--- a/tools/libinput-record.c
+++ b/tools/libinput-record.c
@@ -2148,20 +2148,42 @@ hidraw_dispatch(struct record_context *ctx, int fd, void *data)
 }
 
 static int
-dispatch_sources(struct record_context *ctx)
+wait_for_sources(struct record_context *ctx,
+		 struct epoll_event *ep,
+		 int max_events,
+		 int timeout_ms)
 {
-	struct source *source;
-	struct epoll_event ep[64];
-	int i, count;
-	int timeout = usec_to_millis(ctx->timeout);
-
-	count = epoll_wait(ctx->epoll_fd,
-			   ep,
-			   ARRAY_LENGTH(ep),
-			   timeout > 0 ? timeout : -1);
+	int count = epoll_wait(ctx->epoll_fd, ep, max_events, timeout_ms);
 	if (count < 0)
 		return -errno;
 
+	return count;
+}
+
+static void
+dispatch_ready_sources(struct record_context *ctx, struct epoll_event *ep, int count)
+{
+
+	for (int i = 0; i < count; ++i) {
+		struct source *source = ep[i].data.ptr;
+		if (source->fd == -1)
+			continue;
+
+		source->dispatch(ctx, source->fd, source->user_data);
+	}
+}
+
+static int
+dispatch_sources(struct record_context *ctx)
+{
+	struct epoll_event ep[64];
+	int timeout = usec_to_millis(ctx->timeout);
+
+	int count =
+		wait_for_sources(ctx, ep, ARRAY_LENGTH(ep), timeout > 0 ? timeout : -1);
+	if (count < 0)
+		return count;
+
 	if (count > 0) {
 		usec_t now = usec_from_now();
 		usec_t dt = usec_delta(now, ctx->timestamps.last_wall_time);
@@ -2171,13 +2193,7 @@ dispatch_sources(struct record_context *ctx)
 		}
 	}
 
-	for (i = 0; i < count; ++i) {
-		source = ep[i].data.ptr;
-		if (source->fd == -1)
-			continue;
-
-		source->dispatch(ctx, source->fd, source->user_data);
-	}
+	dispatch_ready_sources(ctx, ep, count);
 
 	return count;
 }
@@ -2235,6 +2251,34 @@ mainloop(struct record_context *ctx)
 	do {
 		struct record_device *d;
 
+		struct epoll_event ep[64] = { 0 };
+		int count = 0;
+
+		if (autorestart) {
+			fprintf(stderr,
+				"%sWaiting for events...\n",
+				isatty(STDERR_FILENO) ? "" : "# ");
+
+			/* Don't create the output file until we have events */
+			count = wait_for_sources(ctx, ep, ARRAY_LENGTH(ep), -1);
+			if (count < 0) {
+				fprintf(stderr, "Error: %s\n", strerror(-count));
+				ctx->stop = true;
+				break;
+			}
+
+			bool has_event_source = false;
+			for (int i = 0; i < count; i++) {
+				struct source *s = ep[i].data.ptr;
+				if (s->dispatch != signalfd_dispatch)
+					has_event_source = true;
+			}
+			if (!has_event_source) {
+				dispatch_ready_sources(ctx, ep, count);
+				break;
+			}
+		}
+
 		if (!open_output_files(ctx, autorestart)) {
 			fprintf(stderr,
 				"Failed to open '%s'\n",
@@ -2257,8 +2301,6 @@ mainloop(struct record_context *ctx)
 
 		iprintf(ctx->first_device->fp, I_TOPLEVEL, "devices:\n");
 
-		/* we only print the first device's description, the
-		 * rest is assembled after CTRL+C */
 		list_for_each(d, &ctx->devices, link) {
 			print_device_description(d);
 			iprintf(d->fp, I_DEVICE, "events:\n");
@@ -2272,6 +2314,15 @@ mainloop(struct record_context *ctx)
 			handle_libinput_events(ctx, ctx->first_device, true);
 		}
 
+		if (autorestart) {
+			/* Dispatch the events that woke us up from
+			 * the idle wait */
+			dispatch_ready_sources(ctx, ep, count);
+
+			if (ctx->first_device->fp != stdout)
+				print_progress_bar();
+		}
+
 		while (true) {
 			int rc = dispatch_sources(ctx);
 			if (rc < 0) { /* error */
@@ -2285,9 +2336,7 @@ mainloop(struct record_context *ctx)
 				break;
 
 			if (rc == 0) {
-				fprintf(stderr,
-					" ... timeout%s\n",
-					ctx->had_events ? "" : " (file is empty)");
+				fprintf(stderr, " ... timeout\n");
 				break;
 			}
 
@@ -2325,17 +2374,7 @@ mainloop(struct record_context *ctx)
 			d->fp = NULL;
 		}
 
-		/* If we didn't have events, delete the file. */
 		if (!isatty(fileno(ctx->first_device->fp))) {
-			struct record_device *d;
-
-			if (!ctx->had_events && ctx->output_file.name_with_suffix) {
-				fprintf(stderr,
-					"No events recorded, deleting '%s'\n",
-					ctx->output_file.name_with_suffix);
-				unlink(ctx->output_file.name_with_suffix);
-			}
-
 			list_for_each(d, &ctx->devices, link) {
 				if (d->fp && d->fp != stdout) {
 					fclose(d->fp);
diff --git a/tools/libinput-record.man b/tools/libinput-record.man
index 93c89d9f..c46710d3 100644
--- a/tools/libinput-record.man
+++ b/tools/libinput-record.man
@@ -42,8 +42,10 @@ nodes may be provided on the commandline.
 .B \-\-autorestart=s
 Terminate the current recording after
 .I s
-seconds of device inactivity. If
-\fB\-\-output-file\fR is not specified, it defaults to
+seconds of device inactivity. The output file is not created until
+the first event is received. This avoids creating empty files during
+idle periods.
+If \fB\-\-output-file\fR is not specified, it defaults to
 \fBlibinput-recording.yml\fR. The output filename is used as prefix,
 suffixed with the date and time of the recording. The timeout must be
 greater than 0.