diff --git a/influxdb/client.py b/influxdb/client.py
index b9fcb0c3..99a88720 100644
--- a/influxdb/client.py
+++ b/influxdb/client.py
@@ -460,7 +460,7 @@ def create_database(self, dbname):
         :param dbname: the name of the database to create
         :type dbname: str
         """
-        self.query("CREATE DATABASE \"%s\"" % dbname)
+        self.query("CREATE DATABASE IF NOT EXISTS \"%s\"" % dbname)
 
     def drop_database(self, dbname):
         """Drop a database from InfluxDB.