diff --git a/changelogs/fragments/1594_ec2_instance_key_name_is_not_an_error.yml b/changelogs/fragments/1594_ec2_instance_key_name_is_not_an_error.yml
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..2729045d481
--- /dev/null
+++ b/changelogs/fragments/1594_ec2_instance_key_name_is_not_an_error.yml
@@ -0,0 +1,3 @@
+---
+minor_changes:
+  - if key_name is empty, assume it is absent
diff --git a/plugins/modules/ec2_instance.py b/plugins/modules/ec2_instance.py
index a70b6bf15dd..38792b05089 100644
--- a/plugins/modules/ec2_instance.py
+++ b/plugins/modules/ec2_instance.py
@@ -1260,7 +1260,7 @@ def build_top_level_options(params):
             msg="You must include an image_id or image.id parameter to create an instance, or use a launch_template."
         )
 
-    if params.get("key_name") is not None:
+    if params.get("key_name") not in (None, ""):
         spec["KeyName"] = params.get("key_name")
 
     spec.update(build_userdata(params))