Shoulder popping or clicking with no pain, swelling or weakness is common and usually harmless. It can come from tendons sliding over bone, gas bubbles in the joint fluid, or the shoulder blade gliding over the ribs. Clicking matters more when it comes with pain, a catching or locking feeling, weakness, or a sense that the shoulder is slipping out. Those patterns point to a problem worth getting assessed, especially after an injury.
The shoulder is a shallow ball-and-socket joint with many tendons, a fluid sac and a shoulder blade moving around it. Noise is a normal part of how it moves. The sound itself says little. What travels with the sound says much more.
Key takeaways
- Painless clicking: common and usually harmless, including in people with healthy shoulders.
- Clicking that matters: clicking with pain, catching, locking, weakness or a slipping feeling.
- Common causes when painful: rotator cuff or bursa irritation, a labral tear, shoulder instability, biceps tendon problems, or arthritis.
- After an injury: new painful clicking after a fall, dislocation or heavy lift should be assessed.
- Shoulder blade noise: a grinding or snapping under the shoulder blade (snapping scapula) is a separate cause, often linked to posture and muscle control.
Where are you right now?
- It clicks but does not hurt: read “What tends to set the clicks apart”. No change to your activity is usually needed.
- It clicks and hurts, weeks in and not settling: go to “Where else this could be coming from” and “If it isn’t going to plan”.
- After a dislocation, injection or surgery: some clicking is common during recovery. Clicking with a slipping feeling should be raised with whoever is managing your recovery.
- Getting back to work or sport: the “When can I…” table covers typical ranges when clicking comes with pain.
What tends to set the clicks apart
- A single pop, then nothing for a while: often a gas bubble in the joint fluid. It usually cannot be repeated straight away and is painless.
- A soft click or snap you can repeat, no pain: often a tendon sliding over a bony edge. Usually harmless.
- Grinding under the shoulder blade: the shoulder blade moving over the ribs. Usually painless. When it hurts, it often eases with shoulder blade strengthening.
- A painful click lifting the arm out to the side: often linked to the rotator cuff and the fluid sac above it.
- A deep clunk or catch with the arm overhead or turned back: more typical of a labral tear or instability.
- Crunching with stiffness in an older shoulder: more typical of arthritis.
Week by week
This applies to painful clicking without a major injury. Painless clicking does not need a timeline.
- Weeks 0 to 2: cut back on the movement that produces the painful click, often repeated overhead reaching or heavy pressing. Keep the shoulder moving in the comfortable range.
- Weeks 2 to 6: strengthening for the rotator cuff and shoulder blade muscles, starting low and close to the body. Painful clicking often becomes less frequent as control improves.
- Weeks 6 to 12: exercises move toward and above shoulder height. Many people notice the click is quieter or no longer painful, even if it has not disappeared.
- Months 3 to 6: sport and heavy overhead work are reintroduced. Clicking that stays painful or keeps catching by this point is worth a further look.
The sound tells you little. What comes with it tells you most.
Where else this could be coming from
- Labral tear (including a SLAP tear): deep catching or clunking, pain with the arm overhead, and sometimes a dead-arm feeling. Common after a dislocation or in throwing sports.
- Shoulder instability: a feeling that the ball is slipping partly out of the socket, often with the arm up and turned back.
- Biceps tendon slipping in its groove: a painful snap at the front of the shoulder when turning the arm in and out.
- Rotator cuff tear: clicking with clear weakness lifting or turning the arm.
- AC joint: clicking or grinding on top of the shoulder, at the end of the collarbone, often after a fall onto the shoulder.
- The neck and upper back: stiffness in the upper back changes how the shoulder blade moves and can make shoulder blade noise more noticeable.
Is this normal?
- “Both shoulders click.” Very common, and usually reassuring when neither one hurts.
- “It clicks during push-ups or overhead presses.” Common. If it is painless, it rarely means damage.
- “It started clicking after my shoulder came out.” Common, as the labrum and capsule are often stretched or torn in a dislocation. Raise it with whoever is managing your recovery, especially if it catches.
- “Cracking it feels good.” Gently moving your shoulder until it pops is unlikely to cause harm. Avoid forcing it repeatedly, or letting someone else force it.
If it isn’t going to plan
Maybe it is week six, and the click that used to be quiet now comes with a sharp catch every time you put a bag in the overhead locker or reach for the top shelf. The thought is that clicking is just how your shoulder is, so you have been ignoring it. Painless clicking can be ignored. A click that now hurts or catches has changed, and the change is what matters.
A catching shoulder usually needs better control of the ball in the socket, from the rotator cuff and the shoulder blade muscles, built up in small steps. When a tear or instability is behind it, a scan and a surgical opinion are sometimes discussed. Get assessed by a physical therapist or doctor if painful clicking is not settling after 6 to 8 weeks. Ask:
- Source: where do you think the click is coming from?
- Stability: does my shoulder show signs of instability?
- Imaging: would a scan change what we do?
- Activity: which movements should I change for now, and which can I keep doing?
When can I…
These ranges apply to clicking that comes with pain. Painless clicking does not usually need any restriction.
| Activity | Typical range |
|---|---|
| Sleep on that side | Often possible throughout; if painful, usually eases over 4 to 8 weeks |
| Drive | Usually possible throughout |
| Reach overhead | Painful overhead reaching often eases over 6 to 12 weeks of strengthening |
| Lift | Light loads close to the body throughout; heavy pressing built back up over 6 to 12 weeks |
| Desk work | Usually possible throughout |
| Manual work or sport | Overhead or throwing sport often 2 to 4 months when clicking comes with pain |
If you have had surgery, your surgeon’s protocol comes first.
Call your local emergency number or go to the emergency department if
- Out of place: after a pop, the shoulder looks out of shape, is locked, or you cannot move the arm.
- Circulation or feeling: after an injury, the arm or hand turns cold, pale or numb.
- Chest symptoms: shoulder pain comes with chest pain, breathlessness or sweating.
See a doctor today if
- Pop with sudden weakness: a pop during a fall or heavy lift was followed by weakness lifting the arm.
- Hot, swollen shoulder: the shoulder is hot, red or swollen, or you have a fever.
Get it checked soon if
- Slipping: the shoulder feels like it slips partly out of place.
- Catching or locking: the shoulder catches, locks or gives way during movement.
- Painful click not settling: painful clicking has not eased after 6 to 8 weeks.
- Dead arm: the arm suddenly goes weak or numb for a moment during overhead or throwing movements.
More on this area: shoulder conditions.
A shoulder that clicks without pain is usually just a shoulder that moves.
Written by Louise Yow, Neck & Shoulder Physio.