diff --git a/tools/patman/database.py b/tools/patman/database.py
index 2d6e27ef6e7..2b05a6c4cfe 100644
--- a/tools/patman/database.py
+++ b/tools/patman/database.py
@@ -122,8 +122,13 @@ class Database:  # pylint:disable=R0904
             raise ValueError('Already open')
         if not os.path.exists(self.db_path):
             tout.warning(f'Creating new database {self.db_path}')
-        self.con = sqlite3.connect(self.db_path)
+        self.con = sqlite3.connect(self.db_path, timeout=30)
         self.cur = self.con.cursor()
+        # WAL lets readers and a writer coexist across processes; the busy
+        # timeout above rides out brief contention before raising 'database
+        # is locked'
+        self.cur.execute('PRAGMA journal_mode=WAL')
+        self.cur.execute('PRAGMA synchronous=NORMAL')
         self.is_open = True
 
     def close(self):
diff --git a/tools/patman/patman.rst b/tools/patman/patman.rst
index 39fc04deec8..ef8e2e2025c 100644
--- a/tools/patman/patman.rst
+++ b/tools/patman/patman.rst
@@ -1465,6 +1465,16 @@ Patman stores series tracking, review and workflow state in a SQLite
 database (``.patman.db``) in the top-level git directory. The schema is
 versioned and auto-migrated on startup (currently at v10).
 
+The connection is opened in WAL mode (``journal_mode=WAL``,
+``synchronous=NORMAL``) with a 30-second busy timeout, which lets multiple
+patman invocations share the database safely: concurrent readers do not block
+each other, and a writer only briefly excludes other writers. This means it is
+fine to run, for example, ``patman status`` in one terminal while a long
+``patman review`` is running in another. WAL creates ``.patman.db-wal`` and
+``.patman.db-shm`` sidecar files alongside the database; they are managed by
+SQLite and removed on a clean close, so copy or sync all three together if you
+back the database up by hand.
+
 The database allows patman to track a patch series across multiple
 versions, recording which patches belong to each version and how they
 map to patchwork entries. This means patman can detect when a new