diff --git a/aio/content/guide/service-worker-devops.md b/aio/content/guide/service-worker-devops.md
index 1935a2d9c0..6af45fdd7d 100644
--- a/aio/content/guide/service-worker-devops.md
+++ b/aio/content/guide/service-worker-devops.md
@@ -32,12 +32,10 @@ server can ensure that the Angular app always has a consistent set of files.
 
 #### Update checks
 
-Every time the Angular service worker starts, it checks for updates to the 
-app by looking for updates to the `ngsw.json` manifest. 
-
-Note that the service worker starts periodically throughout the usage of 
-the app because the web browser terminates the service worker if the page 
-is idle beyond a given timeout.
+Every time the user opens or refreshes the application, the Angular service worker
+checks for updates to the app by looking for updates to the `ngsw.json` manifest. If
+an update is found, it is downloaded and cached automatically, and will be served
+the next time the application is loaded.
 
 ### Resource integrity
 
@@ -276,8 +274,8 @@ with service workers. Such tools can be powerful when used properly,
 but there are a few things to keep in mind.
 
 * When using developer tools, the service worker is kept running 
-in the background and never restarts. For the Angular service 
-worker, this means that update checks to the app will generally not happen.
+in the background and never restarts. This can cause behavior with Dev
+Tools open to differ from behavior a user might experience.
 
 * If you look in the Cache Storage viewer, the cache is frequently 
 out of date. Right click the Cache Storage title and refresh the caches.
diff --git a/packages/service-worker/worker/src/driver.ts b/packages/service-worker/worker/src/driver.ts
index 6d2f229190..755e9e4a29 100644
--- a/packages/service-worker/worker/src/driver.ts
+++ b/packages/service-worker/worker/src/driver.ts
@@ -88,6 +88,11 @@ export class Driver implements Debuggable, UpdateSource {
 
   private lastUpdateCheck: number|null = null;
 
+  /**
+   * Whether there is a check for updates currently scheduled due to navigation.
+   */
+  private scheduledNavUpdateCheck: boolean = false;
+
   /**
    * A scheduler which manages a queue of tasks that need to be executed when the SW is
    * not doing any other work (not processing any other requests).
@@ -327,6 +332,15 @@ export class Driver implements Debuggable, UpdateSource {
       return this.safeFetch(event.request);
     }
 
+    // On navigation requests, check for new updates.
+    if (event.request.mode === 'navigate' && !this.scheduledNavUpdateCheck) {
+      this.scheduledNavUpdateCheck = true;
+      this.idle.schedule('check-updates-on-navigation', async() => {
+        this.scheduledNavUpdateCheck = false;
+        await this.checkForUpdate();
+      });
+    }
+
     // Decide which version of the app to use to serve this request. This is asynchronous as in
     // some cases, a record will need to be written to disk about the assignment that is made.
     const appVersion = await this.assignVersion(event);
diff --git a/packages/service-worker/worker/test/happy_spec.ts b/packages/service-worker/worker/test/happy_spec.ts
index 14b404926b..e578b8aeb7 100644
--- a/packages/service-worker/worker/test/happy_spec.ts
+++ b/packages/service-worker/worker/test/happy_spec.ts
@@ -337,6 +337,41 @@ export function main() {
       serverUpdate.assertNoOtherRequests();
     });
 
+    async_it('checks for updates on navigation', async() => {
+      expect(await makeRequest(scope, '/foo.txt')).toEqual('this is foo');
+      await driver.initialized;
+      server.clearRequests();
+
+      expect(await makeRequest(scope, '/foo.txt', 'default', {
+        mode: 'navigate',
+      })).toEqual('this is foo');
+
+      scope.advance(12000);
+      await driver.idle.empty;
+
+      server.assertSawRequestFor('ngsw.json');
+    });
+
+    async_it('does not make concurrent checks for updates on navigation', async() => {
+      expect(await makeRequest(scope, '/foo.txt')).toEqual('this is foo');
+      await driver.initialized;
+      server.clearRequests();
+
+      expect(await makeRequest(scope, '/foo.txt', 'default', {
+        mode: 'navigate',
+      })).toEqual('this is foo');
+
+      expect(await makeRequest(scope, '/foo.txt', 'default', {
+        mode: 'navigate',
+      })).toEqual('this is foo');
+
+      scope.advance(12000);
+      await driver.idle.empty;
+
+      server.assertSawRequestFor('ngsw.json');
+      server.assertNoOtherRequests();
+    });
+
     async_it('preserves multiple client assignments across restarts', async() => {
       expect(await makeRequest(scope, '/foo.txt')).toEqual('this is foo');
       await driver.initialized;