diff --git a/files/en-us/web/api/idbdatabase/index.md b/files/en-us/web/api/idbdatabase/index.md
index 2d203f8d8cb7aa6..491245d2d8dcdc7 100644
--- a/files/en-us/web/api/idbdatabase/index.md
+++ b/files/en-us/web/api/idbdatabase/index.md
@@ -44,7 +44,7 @@ Listen to these events using `addEventListener()` or by assigning an event liste
   - : An event fired when the database connection is unexpectedly closed.
 
 - [`versionchange`](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBDatabase/versionchange_event)
-  - : An event fired when a database structure change was requested.
+  - : An event fired when another connection requested a structure change (an upgrade) or a deletion. Handler code should [close the database](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBDatabase/versionchange_event) so that the change is not blocked.
 
 The following events are available to `IDBDatabase` via event bubbling from {{domxref("IDBTransaction")}}:
 
diff --git a/files/en-us/web/api/idbdatabase/versionchange_event/index.md b/files/en-us/web/api/idbdatabase/versionchange_event/index.md
index b97b1f69291e19c..32d32e870e7190e 100644
--- a/files/en-us/web/api/idbdatabase/versionchange_event/index.md
+++ b/files/en-us/web/api/idbdatabase/versionchange_event/index.md
@@ -8,8 +8,11 @@ browser-compat: api.IDBDatabase.versionchange_event
 
 {{APIRef("IndexedDB")}}
 
-The `versionchange` event is fired when a database structure change ([`upgradeneeded`](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBOpenDBRequest/upgradeneeded_event) event send on an [`IDBOpenDBRequest`](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBOpenDBRequest) or [`IDBFactory.deleteDatabase`](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBFactory/deleteDatabase)) was requested elsewhere (most probably in
-another window/tab on the same computer).
+The `versionchange` event is fired when a database structure change ([`upgradeneeded`](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBOpenDBRequest/upgradeneeded_event) event sent on an [`IDBOpenDBRequest`](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBOpenDBRequest)) or a deletion ([`IDBFactory.deleteDatabase`](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBFactory/deleteDatabase)) was requested from another connection — most probably another window or tab of the same page on the same computer.
+
+An upgrade or deletion cannot proceed while other connections to the database are open: it waits until every other connection has been closed. Handling `versionchange` by calling {{domxref("IDBDatabase.close()")}} is the usual way to let it proceed; if the connection stays open, the request in the other tab stays pending until the connection is closed, for example when the user closes the tab.
+
+If connections are still open after the `versionchange` events have been dispatched, the request that asked for the change receives a [`blocked`](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBOpenDBRequest/blocked_event) event. Once the remaining connections are closed, an upgrade continues with that request's [`upgradeneeded`](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IDBOpenDBRequest/upgradeneeded_event) event. Code that keeps running after closing its connection should also expect that reopening the database with its old version number now fails with a `VersionError`, because the requested version is lower than the database's current version.
 
 ## Syntax
 
@@ -27,64 +30,49 @@ A generic {{domxref("Event")}}.
 
 ## Examples
 
-This example opens a database and, on success, adds a listener to `versionchange`:
+The important thing a `versionchange` handler can do is close the database, so that the tab that asked for the change is unblocked. A common pattern is to close the connection and tell the user to reload:
 
 ```js
-// Open the database
-const dBOpenRequest = window.indexedDB.open("Nonexistent", 4);
+const dbOpenRequest = window.indexedDB.open("toDoList", 1);
 
-dBOpenRequest.onupgradeneeded = (event) => {
+dbOpenRequest.onsuccess = (event) => {
   const db = event.target.result;
-  // Create an objectStore for this database
-  const objectStore = db.createObjectStore("toDoList", {
-    keyPath: "taskTitle",
-  });
-
-  // define what data items the objectStore will contain
-  objectStore.createIndex("hours", "hours", { unique: false });
-  objectStore.createIndex("minutes", "minutes", { unique: false });
-  objectStore.createIndex("day", "day", { unique: false });
-  objectStore.createIndex("month", "month", { unique: false });
-  objectStore.createIndex("year", "year", { unique: false });
-};
 
-dBOpenRequest.addEventListener("success", (event) => {
-  const db = event.target.result;
-  db.addEventListener("versionchange", (event) => {
-    console.log("The version of this database has changed");
-  });
-});
+  db.onversionchange = () => {
+    // Another tab asked for a newer version. Close our connection so the
+    // other tab's upgradeneeded can run, then ask the user to reload.
+    db.close();
+    document.querySelector("p").textContent =
+      "A new version of this page is ready. Please reload or close this tab.";
+  };
+};
 ```
 
-The same example, using the `onversionchange` event handler property:
+A tab that requests the change should show the state of the request to the user, so that a block on another tab is not mistaken for a failure:
 
 ```js
-// Open the database
-const dBOpenRequest = window.indexedDB.open("Nonexistent", 4);
+const dbOpenRequest = window.indexedDB.open("toDoList", 2);
+
+// Another tab still has the database open (it did not close its connection
+// in response to versionchange), so the upgrade has to wait.
+dbOpenRequest.onblocked = () => {
+  document.querySelector("p").textContent =
+    "Still waiting for other tabs to close the database.";
+};
 
-dBOpenRequest.onupgradeneeded = (event) => {
+dbOpenRequest.onupgradeneeded = (event) => {
   const db = event.target.result;
-  // Create an objectStore for this database
-  const objectStore = db.createObjectStore("toDoList", {
-    keyPath: "taskTitle",
-  });
-
-  // define what data items the objectStore will contain
-  objectStore.createIndex("hours", "hours", { unique: false });
-  objectStore.createIndex("minutes", "minutes", { unique: false });
-  objectStore.createIndex("day", "day", { unique: false });
-  objectStore.createIndex("month", "month", { unique: false });
-  objectStore.createIndex("year", "year", { unique: false });
+  db.createObjectStore("toDoList", { keyPath: "taskTitle" });
 };
 
-dBOpenRequest.onsuccess = (event) => {
+dbOpenRequest.onsuccess = (event) => {
   const db = event.target.result;
-  db.onversionchange = (event) => {
-    console.log("The version of this database has changed");
-  };
+  document.querySelector("p").textContent = "Version " + db.version;
 };
 ```
 
+See also [Version changes while a web app is open in another tab](/en-US/docs/Web/API/IndexedDB_API/Using_IndexedDB#version_changes_while_a_web_app_is_open_in_another_tab) in the Using IndexedDB guide.
+
 ## Specifications
 
 {{Specifications}}