How To Fix A Bike That Gives a Clicking Noise When Pedaling

If you are new to cycling, a clicking sound when you pedal can be unnerving because unwanted clicking implies wear and damage. Thankfully, in most cases, clicking doesn’t mean that your bike is seriously damaged and can be fixed easily.

The clicking sound as you pedal usually comes from excessive chain friction, worn bearings, or poorly indexed shifting. Most of the time, they don’t need immediate fixing, but they are signs that your bike needs maintenance, which can be done at home.

It’s not always easy to identify where the noise comes from when you pedal, and the clicking may coincide with the pedal stroke.

It’s a good idea to pick up your bike by the handlebars and shake it to check for loose fixtures. This might lead you straight to the source of the problem. If not, here is a list of possible problems to check before taking your bike to your local mechanic.

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Let’s go through the different possible sound sources and how you can fix them.

Visible Foreign bodies

The first thing you should always check for is whether there are visible objects that can rub or hit against something on other parts of the bicycle (e.g., spokes, pedal cranks).

Some years ago, I bought a new bike. On its second ride, it started clicking. I panicked and called the bike shop. It was the metal cap on a brake cable that was catching intermittently in the spokes, which was then bent away from the wheel. Twigs or leaves can also do this, especially in rural areas. Stones or even glass in the tire treads can also make a clicking noise as you roll.

How to fix this problem

Pick up your bike, put it on a bike stand, and spin the wheels by hand without using the pedals. It is surprising how often debris from the road can get caught in your wheels or around your frame and then catch, causing a click. 

Often, you can see and just pull out the stick, leaf, or another offending article. A good bike wash and re-lube will also likely remove any of the kind of debris that you can’t see immediately.

Dirty Bike

From visible debris, small bits of muck, sand, or dirt, which are difficult to identify by sight, can lead to a noisy bike. It is a good idea to wash your bike regularly anyway, especially in poor weather and if the roads are dirty. 

Look particularly at the chainrings, gears, and the chain itself, but the wheel bearings, saddle, and headset can also start creaking or clicking if dirt is catching intermittently. 

Disc brakes can also get dirty and cause clicking as the wheel spins through the brake pads. You’ll know if your bike is filthy, but if you haven’t washed it in a while, this may be an easy fix. If you do need to take it to the bike shop, your local mechanic will thank you for doing it, too.

How to fix this problem

Washing a bike isn’t difficult but is worthy of a whole article in itself. Degrease your chain and drivetrain, then spray the whole bike with a hose.

Next, using warm water with suitable detergent, wash the frame with sponges, the drive train, cranks, and so on with brushes. Concentrate on the chain, chainrings, gears, and derailleur.

When the bike is dry, relubricate your chain and drivetrain thoroughly and carefully. This will cure an awful lot of the clicks with minimal effort and expense. Grit may also be washed out of disc brakes, which can be another source of the clicks.

Unlubed Chain

This follows on from the wash in many ways. As a rather lazy cyclist, I lube my chain more than I wash my bike, but last time out, I did a thorough wash and forgot to re-lube the chain. The clicks were awful. 

Lift your bike and spin the pedals. The chain may look unlubed on sight, or it might seem a bit rusty. If you touch the chain, you may also be able to tell there isn’t enough lube. The clicking will be loud and obvious, too, and it may be that it doesn’t pass freely through the derailleur pulley wheel.

How to fix the problem

Re-lube the chain as usual, then leave it to soak in. After about 15 minutes, wipe off any excess lube with a dry rag and try pedaling again. Once again, it may well be a cheap fix to that annoying click.

Poorly indexed gear shifting

Sometimes, you may find, especially with older, less well-maintained, or cheaper bikes, that the chain does not move smoothly between the gears when changing up or down. 

If the chain doesn’t move the full distance to fit into the chainring, then you may not change gear at all or may start a regular click. If this happens suddenly during a ride, you’ll realize when you seem to miss a gear and the clunking and clicking starts. If you are rotating a bike’s pedals by hand, then when you change gear, you will hear a crunch, and clicking may start. 

How to fix the problem

There is a small knob called the barrel adjuster near the chainring on the front and rear derailleur, if you have both, attached to the gear cable. This knob controls how far the chain can move to switch between gears.

A small adjustment with your fingers, along with a bit of practice pedaling, should make your gear change smoother and your pedaling quiet again. If you rotate the pedals with the chainset on the smallest ring, turn the barrel adjuster slightly and you will hear the click get better or worse. 

A quarter turn should make a big difference. It is then a quick fix even for the least technically minded cyclist as you check the shift right up and down your gears. If this doesn’t work, but it is obviously the gears that are causing the click, it may be an old cable that needs changing or a worn chainring. For me, those are both bike shop jobs.

Wheel quick release

Dirt can accumulate on the wheel axles, and the quick-release skewer can even sometimes corrode over time, particularly during bad weather. If your clicking starts when standing up on the pedals and pedaling hard, this might be a good place to look.

How to fix the problem

Pull out the quick-release skewer or pull-through bar, wash, and re-lube it if necessary, which you can do with ordinary chain lube or grease. If the skewer or the bar on which the tire is held is visibly corroded, then you may need a replacement. If it is merely dirt and a lack of lube, you will be on the road again in no time.

Pedal bearings

The creak may obviously be coming from the pedal itself, and there are three things you can check.

The first thing to check here is if the pedals are tightened correctly. It’s quite unlikely for them to come loose because they are designed to tighten as you rotate them to move forward, but it is worth checking.

Second, pedals can also be removed, cleaned, and reattached, but you’ll probably need a wrench to do this, so it may be a job for your mechanic. 

Third, since your pedals also have bearings, they can break and wear out over time. This usually goes hand-in-hand with some other symptoms, such as a stiff or wobbly pedal, and calls for new pedals to be installed.

Takeaway

Ultimately, a click on a bike suggests something which is loose, dirty, rubbing, damaged, or corroded. Loose and dirty are usually easy to fix, but damaged parts will need replacing.

If none of the above work, it is worth taking your bike to a professional for a service. In the long run, it may save wear and more expensive repairs to the moving parts, and regular servicing can keep your bike in perfect working order through years of use. Try these checks first, though – you may surprise yourself with how easily the majority of clicks are cured.