Change SQLite Connection Timeout using Python

Last Updated : 4 Nov, 2026

SQLite may lock database resources when another connection or process performs a transaction. If an operation cannot proceed until the lock is released, SQLite waits for the configured timeout period before reporting an error.

Syntax

sqlite3.connect("database.db", timeout=20.0)

  • database.db: Specifies the SQLite database file.
  • timeout: Sets the maximum lock-wait duration in seconds.

Example: In following code, we set the connection timeout to 20 seconds while connecting to an SQLite database.

Python 
import sqlite3

sqliteConnection = None

try:
    sqliteConnection = sqlite3.connect(
        "sqlite.db",
        timeout=20.0
    )

    print("Database connected successfully.")

except sqlite3.Error as error:
    print("Error occurred:", error)

finally:
    if sqliteConnection is not None:
        sqliteConnection.close()
        print("SQLite connection closed.")

Output

Database connected successfully.
SQLite connection closed.

Explanation:

  • import sqlite3 imports Python's built-in SQLite module.
  • sqlite3.connect() opens a connection to sqlite.db. If the database file does not exist, SQLite creates it.
  • timeout=20.0 configures the connection to wait for up to 20 seconds when an operation is blocked by a database lock.
  • try-except block handles SQLite-related errors.
  • Finally block closes the connection if it was successfully created.

Choosing a Timeout Value

Appropriate timeout depends on how long database transactions typically take.

  • Use the default value of 5 seconds for ordinary applications.
  • Increase the value when legitimate transactions may hold locks for longer periods
  • Use a value of 0 when operations should not wait for a database lock.
  • Avoid setting an unnecessarily long timeout, as it can delay error handling when a lock is not released.
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