diff --git a/mesonbuild/mtest.py b/mesonbuild/mtest.py
index ba9b06559..8b2382907 100644
--- a/mesonbuild/mtest.py
+++ b/mesonbuild/mtest.py
@@ -1560,6 +1560,16 @@ class TestHarness:
         startdir = os.getcwd()
         try:
             os.chdir(self.options.wd)
+
+            # Before loading build / test data, make sure that the build
+            # configuration does not need to be regenerated. This needs to
+            # happen before rebuild_deps(), because we need the correct list of
+            # tests and their dependencies to compute
+            if not self.options.no_rebuild:
+                ret = subprocess.run(self.ninja + ['build.ninja']).returncode
+                if ret != 0:
+                    raise TestException(f'Could not configure {self.options.wd!r}')
+
             self.build_data = build.load(os.getcwd())
             if not self.options.setup:
                 self.options.setup = self.build_data.test_setup_default_name
diff --git a/unittests/allplatformstests.py b/unittests/allplatformstests.py
index 824d97b17..1b8ff85f2 100644
--- a/unittests/allplatformstests.py
+++ b/unittests/allplatformstests.py
@@ -793,6 +793,26 @@ class AllPlatformTests(BasePlatformTests):
 
         self.assertFailedTestCount(2, self.mtest_command + ['--no-suite', 'subprjfail:fail', '--no-suite', 'subprjmix:fail'])
 
+    def test_mtest_reconfigure(self):
+        if self.backend is not Backend.ninja:
+            raise SkipTest(f'mtest can\'t rebuild with {self.backend.name!r}')
+
+        testdir = os.path.join(self.common_test_dir, '206 tap tests')
+        self.init(testdir)
+        self.utime(os.path.join(testdir, 'meson.build'))
+        o = self._run(self.mtest_command + ['--list'])
+        self.assertIn('Regenerating build files.', o)
+        self.assertIn('test_features / xfail', o)
+        o = self._run(self.mtest_command + ['--list'])
+        self.assertNotIn('Regenerating build files.', o)
+        # no real targets should have been built
+        tester = os.path.join(self.builddir, 'tester' + exe_suffix)
+        self.assertPathDoesNotExist(tester)
+        # check that we don't reconfigure if --no-rebuild is passed
+        self.utime(os.path.join(testdir, 'meson.build'))
+        o = self._run(self.mtest_command + ['--list', '--no-rebuild'])
+        self.assertNotIn('Regenerating build files.', o)
+
     def test_build_by_default(self):
         testdir = os.path.join(self.common_test_dir, '129 build by default')
         self.init(testdir)