diff --git a/esphome/analyze_memory/__init__.py b/esphome/analyze_memory/__init__.py
index 6a51fa5081..48ecf2c1dc 100644
--- a/esphome/analyze_memory/__init__.py
+++ b/esphome/analyze_memory/__init__.py
@@ -770,7 +770,7 @@ class MemoryAnalyzer:
         Skips scanning if ``_source_symbol_map`` was already populated by
         ``_parse_map_file()``.
         """
-        if self._source_symbol_map:
+        if self._source_symbol_map or not self.nm_path:
             return
 
         obj_dir = self._find_object_files_dir()