Initially Kevin Williamson had little interest in developing the series, finding the premise too similar to other vampire tales. However, at Julie Plec's urging, he began to read the novels and started to become intrigued by the story: "I began to realize that it was a story about a small town, about that town's underbelly and about what lurks under the surface."Williamson has stated the town's story will be the main focus of the series, rather than high school.

On February 6, 2009, Variety announced that The CW had green-lit the pilot for The Vampire Diaries with Williamson and Julie Plec set as the head writers and executive producers. On May 19, 2009, the series was officially ordered for the 2009–2010 season.

The pilot episode was filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia, but the rest of the episodes have been filmed in Covington, Georgia (which doubles as the fictional small town of Mystic Falls, Virginia) and various other communities around Greater Atlanta, to take advantage of local tax incentives.

The series was given a full, 22-episode order on October 21, 2009 after strong ratings for the first half of the season.

On February 16, 2010, The CW announced that it had renewed the show for a second season,which premiered on September 9, 2010.

TV Guide reported that Ian Somerhalder is the highest-paid cast member, earning $40,000 per episode.