{% include anchor.html edit="true" title="Create a database" hash="create_database" %}

{% highlight js %}
new PouchDB([name], [options])
{% endhighlight %}

This method creates a database or opens an existing one. If you use a URL like `'http://domain.com/dbname'`, then PouchDB will work as a client to an online CouchDB instance.  Otherwise it will create a local database using [whatever backend is present](/adapters.html).

### Options

* `name`: You can omit the `name` argument and specify it via `options` instead. Note that the name is required.

**Options for local databases:**

* `auto_compaction`: This turns on auto compaction, which means `compact()` is called after every change to the database. Defaults to `false`.
* `adapter`: One of `'idb'`, `'leveldb'`, `'websql'`, or `'http'`. If unspecified, PouchDB will infer this automatically, preferring IndexedDB to WebSQL in browsers that support both (i.e. Chrome, Opera and Android 4.4+).
* `revs_limit`: Specify how many old revisions we keep track (not a copy) of. Specifying a low value means Pouch may not be able to figure out whether a new revision received via replication is related to any it currently has which could result in a conflict. Defaults to `1000`.

**Options for remote databases:**

* `ajax`: (Remote databases only.) Ajax requester options. For instance, passing in the options `{ajax: {timeout: 10000}}` will allow you to set the max timeout for an HTTP request. These are passed verbatim to [request][] (in Node.js) or  [a request shim](https://github.com/pouchdb/pouchdb/blob/master/lib/deps/request-browser.js) (in the browser), with the exception of:
* `ajax.cache`: Appends a random string to the end of all HTTP GET requests to avoid them being cached on IE. Set this to `true` to prevent this happening.
* `ajax.headers`: The `ajax.headers` option allows you to customise headers that are sent to the remote HTTP Server.
* `auth.username` + `auth.password`: You can specify HTTP auth parameters either by using a database with a name in the form `http://user:pass@host/name` or via the `auth.username` + `auth.password` options.
* `ajax.withCredentials`: Set to `false` to disable transferring cookies or [HTTP Auth information](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/HTTP/Access_control_CORS#Requests_with_credentials). Defaults to `true`.
* `skip_setup`: Initially PouchDB checks if the database exists, and tries to create it, if it does not exist yet. Set this to `true` to skip this setup.

**IndexedDB-only options:**

* `storage`: Specifies whether you want to use `persistent` or `temporary` storage. This non-standard feature has been supported in Firefox since version 26. Find out more about the available storage types, and how Firefox handles client-side data storage, at [Browser storage limits and eviction criteria](https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Web/API/IndexedDB_API/Browser_storage_limits_and_eviction_criteria).

**WebSQL-only options:**

* `size`: Amount in MB to request for storage, which you will need if you are storing >5MB in order to [avoid storage limit errors on iOS/Safari](/errors.html#not_enough_space). Persistent views use a separate database per view which will also request storage space so keep in mind the upper storage limits when using persistent views on iOS.

**Notes:**

1. In IndexedDB and WebSQL, PouchDB will use `_pouch_` to prefix the internal database names. Do not manually create databases with the same prefix.
2. When acting as a client on Node, any other options given will be passed to [request][].
3. When using the `'leveldb'` adapter (the default on Node), any other options given will be passed to [levelup][].

[request]: https://github.com/mikeal/request
[levelup]: https://github.com/rvagg/node-levelup
[levelup_options]: https://github.com/rvagg/node-levelup/#options

#### Example Usage:
{% highlight js %}
var db = new PouchDB('dbname');
// or
var db = new PouchDB('http://localhost:5984/dbname');
{% endhighlight %}

Create a PouchDB that explicitly uses WebSQL:

{% highlight js %}
var db = new PouchDB('dbname', {adapter : 'websql'});
{% endhighlight %}

Create an in-memory Pouch (must install `pouchdb-adapter-memory` first):

{% highlight js %}
var db = new PouchDB('dbname', {adapter: 'memory'});
{% endhighlight %}

Create a remote PouchDB with special Ajax options:

{% highlight js %}
var db = new PouchDB('http://example.com/dbname', {
  ajax: {
    cache: false,
    timeout: 10000,
    headers: {
      'X-Some-Special-Header': 'foo'
    },
  },
  auth: {
    username: 'mysecretusername',
    password: 'mysecretpassword'
  }
});
{% endhighlight %}

For more info, check out [adapters](/adapters.html).