Written by Dr. Jeffrey Peng, MD — Board-Certified Sports Medicine Physician Published: March 2, 2026 | Last Updated: March 2, 2026 Shoulder cracking and popping sounds can be unsettling, especially when they seem to come out of nowhere. Many patients walk into my clinic concerned that a click or pop in their shoulder means something is seriously wrong — perhaps a rotator cuff tear or the beginning of arthritis. The good news is that in the vast majority of cases, these mecha