Why does my Bike make a Clicking sound?

There are many reasons your bike could be making a clicking sound while cycling. In this post, I am going to go over several common reasons why this may happen.

Clicking sound from near the crankset

Follow this procedure to diagnose and cure a clicking crankset

The first thing you need to do is completely clean your chain and rear cassette.

Fully adjust and lubricate your rear derailleur. Inspect all parts for wear or improper operation.

This may sound strange but if your chain and cassette are dirty and misaligned, it will make diagnosing other issues more difficult. So once you do that, remove your chain rings and clean them throughly. Not only do you need to clean the chain rings but you also need to throughly clean the threads of the chainring bolts and apply a dab of grease to prevent seizing.

Replace your newly cleaned chainrings and go for a test ride. If it's still clicking, you need to remove and service your bottom bracket. If you're a cheapskate, you can just take it out, clean, and reinstall. If you haven't done any service to your bottom bracket in a while, consider removing it and replacing it.

Then, go for a test ride. Is it still clicking?

If yes, then your problem isn't the crankset. You could have faulty clipless pedals. Or, strangely, depending on the bike, that clicking could be originating from a different part of the frame and the sound is being transmitted into the bottom bracket area and just echoing there.

In the past, I've had bad headsets that can create this type of clicking sound.

Disassemble, inspect, and lubricate all headset parts. Reinstall these and go for a test ride.

Still clicking?

Could also be your rear hub. Remove and inspect your freehub body and service in accordance with owners manual.

Still clicking?

Could be a bad saddle rail. I've had those go bad and they make a clicking sound. Also, try removing the seatpost itself and properly relubricating your post. This is quite often and overlooked maintenance item.

Still clicking? Perhaps it's the bolts that affix your handlebars to the stem. Remove, clean threads, and reinstall with a dab of grease and torque to spec.