diff --git a/scripts/render_pid_catalog.py b/scripts/render_pid_catalog.py
index 9aa0dcf..873d5c8 100644
--- a/scripts/render_pid_catalog.py
+++ b/scripts/render_pid_catalog.py
@@ -7,6 +7,13 @@ The sheet is rendered through the same ezdxf/matplotlib frontend
 symbols stays legible on (the tool's 16 x 9 in screenshot is sized for a
 single drawing, not a catalogue).
 
+``render`` reports what was actually drawn, not what the catalogue lists:
+``symbols`` counts the specs whose insert left geometry with a real extent
+in the modelspace (an empty block or a builder that draws nothing is
+``blank``), and ``ink`` is the share of the PNG's pixels that are not the
+background colour -- the labels-only sheet is the baseline the test
+compares against.
+
     uv run --frozen python scripts/render_pid_catalog.py
 """
 
@@ -46,6 +53,39 @@ def _render_png(backend, figsize: tuple[float, float], dpi: int) -> bytes:
     return buf.getvalue()
 
 
+def ink_fraction(png: bytes) -> float:
+    """The share of pixels that are not the sheet's background colour.
+
+    The background is the most common colour, so the number does not depend
+    on which background the frontend paints; a blank sheet reports 0.0.
+    """
+    import io
+
+    import numpy as np
+    from matplotlib.image import imread
+
+    rgba = imread(io.BytesIO(png))
+    pixels = (np.asarray(rgba).reshape(-1, rgba.shape[-1]) * 255).astype(np.uint32)
+    packed = np.zeros(len(pixels), dtype=np.uint32)
+    for channel in range(pixels.shape[1]):  # one integer per pixel; unique() stays 1-D
+        packed = (packed << 8) | pixels[:, channel]
+    _colours, counts = np.unique(packed, return_counts=True)
+    return float(1.0 - counts.max() / len(packed))
+
+
+def _has_extent(doc, handle: str) -> bool:
+    """Whether the entity behind ``handle`` has any length once its block
+    content is resolved -- an INSERT of an empty block has no extent, while
+    a spec break (one vertical line) legitimately has none across x."""
+    from ezdxf import bbox
+
+    entity = doc.entitydb.get(handle)
+    if entity is None:
+        return False
+    box = bbox.extents([entity], fast=True)
+    return box.has_data and (box.size.x > 0 or box.size.y > 0)
+
+
 async def _render(output: Path) -> dict:
     from backends.ezdxf_backend import EzdxfBackend
     from engineering.layers import apply_layer_set
@@ -57,12 +97,18 @@ async def _render(output: Path) -> dict:
     try:
         await backend.drawing_new()
         await apply_layer_set(backend, "pid")
+        doc = backend._require_doc()
         specs = all_specs()
+        blank: list[str] = []
         for index, spec in enumerate(specs):
             col, row = index % COLUMNS, index // COLUMNS
             x, y = col * CELL, -row * CELL
             layer = "PROCESS-PIPING-MAIN" if spec.family == "marker" else None
-            await insert_symbol(backend, spec, x, y, 0.0, 1.0, {}, layer)
+            before = len(doc.modelspace())
+            placed = await insert_symbol(backend, spec, x, y, 0.0, 1.0, {}, layer)
+            handles = [placed.get("handle")] if len(doc.modelspace()) > before else []
+            if not any(_has_extent(doc, h) for h in handles if h):
+                blank.append(spec.name)
             await backend.entity_create_text(
                 spec.name.replace("PID_", ""),
                 x - CELL / 2 + 2,
@@ -73,7 +119,13 @@ async def _render(output: Path) -> dict:
         png = await asyncio.to_thread(_render_png, backend, FIGSIZE, DPI)
         output.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
         output.write_bytes(png)
-        return {"output": str(output), "symbols": len(specs), "bytes": len(png)}
+        return {
+            "output": str(output),
+            "symbols": len(specs) - len(blank),
+            "blank": blank,
+            "bytes": len(png),
+            "ink": await asyncio.to_thread(ink_fraction, png),
+        }
     finally:
         await backend.disconnect()
 
diff --git a/tests/test_pid_resources_prompt.py b/tests/test_pid_resources_prompt.py
index 9786ca0..1c8616d 100644
--- a/tests/test_pid_resources_prompt.py
+++ b/tests/test_pid_resources_prompt.py
@@ -65,9 +65,25 @@ async def test_prompt_walks_the_tool_workflow(client):
     assert "circle with triangle" not in text, "no hand-drawn symbols"
 
 
-def test_catalog_contact_sheet_renders_every_symbol(tmp_path):
+def test_catalog_contact_sheet_renders_every_symbol(tmp_path, monkeypatch):
     pytest.importorskip("matplotlib")
+    import engineering.pid.insert as insert_module
+    from engineering.pid.symbols import all_specs
     from scripts.render_pid_catalog import render
 
     result = render(tmp_path / "sheet.png")
-    assert result["symbols"] >= 100 and result["bytes"] > 10_000
+    assert result["blank"] == [], "every catalogue symbol must leave geometry on the sheet"
+    assert result["symbols"] == len(all_specs()) >= 100 and result["bytes"] > 10_000
+
+    # The evidence has to come from the drawing and the picture, not from the
+    # catalogue's length: a builder that draws nothing yields a labels-only
+    # sheet whose PNG is well past the byte threshold, so the symbol count and
+    # the ink share are what tell the two apart.
+    async def draw_nothing(*_args, **_kwargs):
+        return {"handle": "0", "ports": {}}
+
+    monkeypatch.setattr(insert_module, "insert_symbol", draw_nothing)
+    labels_only = render(tmp_path / "labels_only.png")
+    assert labels_only["symbols"] == 0 and len(labels_only["blank"]) == len(all_specs())
+    assert labels_only["bytes"] > 10_000, "bytes alone would not have caught this"
+    assert result["ink"] > labels_only["ink"] * 1.1, (result["ink"], labels_only["ink"])