diff --git a/patchman/settings.py b/patchman/settings.py
index 5f6f4434..9fe4b84f 100644
--- a/patchman/settings.py
+++ b/patchman/settings.py
@@ -4,6 +4,13 @@
 import site
 import sys
 
+# use pysqlite3 if available
+try:
+    import pysqlite3  # noqa
+    sys.modules['sqlite3'] = sys.modules.pop('pysqlite3')
+except ImportError:
+    pass
+
 # Build paths inside the project like this: os.path.join(BASE_DIR, ...)
 BASE_DIR = os.path.dirname(os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__)))