10 Best Dumbbell Shoulder Exercises for Real Results

If you only have dumbbells but want sculpted shoulders, these at-home exercises will give you impressive results regardless of your experience level or equipment limitations. Dumbbells offer the perfect combination of convenience and versatility for building strong, defined shoulder muscles without needing to set foot in the gym.

Online advice about dumbbell shoulder training can be confusing and contradictory, leaving many wondering if they can safely get shoulder muscle growth with just a pair of dumbbells. As a certified personal trainer with 20 years of experience, I’ve found the best dumbbell shoulder exercises that give the optimal results.

Below are the 10 best dumbbell exercises that specifically target shoulder muscle development. Each of these shoulder exercises can help maximize your results while keeping proper shoulder health and function.

I’ve included step-by-step, detailed instructions and visual demonstrations so you know how to perform each exercise correctly. These proven exercises will help you develop and build impressive shoulders using only dumbbells, while protecting your joints from potential injury.

How to Use Dumbbells to Train Shoulders

The anterior head is on the front of your shoulder, and you can target this with sagittal plane movements such as front raises. The middle head is an adductor, and you can target it with frontal plane movements such as lateral side raises. And the posterior head is a horizontal abductor, and you can target it with transverse plane movements like bent-over side raises.

Compound shoulder exercises like dumbbell overhead presses mostly stimulate the anterior head, but can work all three heads to some extent, and allow heavier loads for more muscle building. You’re going to need isolation exercises to target each head of the shoulder muscles for total development.

It’s common for many to overbuild the anterior deltoid in the front without focusing on building the rear delts.

This can lead to rounded forward slouching shoulders, which is much less aesthetically desirable and causes muscle imbalances that can lead to injuries.

You’ll probably need to do a lot of “weak point” rear deltoid training for well-rounded shoulder muscular development. I prefer training the posterior delts first because you want to train lagging muscles first. You’ll get some hypertrophic (muscle growing) benefit by training them early in your workout.

Train your shoulders with dumbbell exercises that use a variety of angles so you can target the full spectrum of muscle fibers.

This will give you more symmetrical muscle building. For example, if you want capped shoulders, then you’ll want to develop the middle head of the deltoid with dumbbell side raises to get that V-taper look.

3 Must Have Factors for Dumbbell Shoulder Exercises

Muscle activation is the degree to which your muscle fibers are engaged and stimulated by the nervous system during an exercise. An exercise that has higher muscle activation in your shoulders will have a greater amount of muscle fibers that are contracting forcefully and frequently.¹

More Muscle Fibers Recruited = Greater Muscle Growth

When you recruit more muscle fibers, you’ll create a bigger growth stimulus. This is because these fibers are responsive to hypertrophy. Higher muscle activation during an exercise is linked with mechanical tension, which is the most important driver of muscle growth.²

Shoulder exercises that let you truly feel the muscle working are best for building a strong mind-muscle connection, maximizing tension, and improving training results.³

For example, when training shoulders, focus intently on the sensation in your delts as you lift the dumbbells. This internal focus enhances neural drive to the muscle, strengthening the mind-muscle connection and maximizing activation.

These shoulder exercises also have a deep stretch on one end and a strong contraction at the other, which enhances mechanical tension. The overall mechanical tension in your shoulder muscle fibers throughout the range of motion will be amplified, giving you better results.⁴

Front (Anterior) Shoulder Exercises

Dumbbell Shoulder Press

Dumbbell shoulder presses are the number one shoulder exercise because it hits all three heads. This allows for heavier weights for progressive overload, engages stabilizing muscles, and has a high range of motion. But it mostly work the front of your shoulders.

I prefer doing this exercise seated to reduce lower body involvement, back strain, and momentum.

1. Set up a bench so it’s about 90 degrees vertical or slightly less. Sit on the bench and hold a dumbbell in each hand. Then bring the dumbbells up so they’re at shoulder height with your palms facing forward and your elbows bent about 90 degrees.
2. Squeeze your shoulder blades together on your back. Arch up your chest and tighten your abs. Exhale and press the dumbbells straight overhead in a controlled manner until your arms are fully extended but your elbows aren’t locked out completely.
3. Keep your back pressed against the bench and your abs tight throughout the movement. Do not bring the dumbbells together and clink them, but instead press them directly over your shoulders.
4. Breathe in as you slowly lower the dumbbells back down to shoulder height to repeat the movement.

Arnold Press

The Arnold press was made famous by Arnold Schwarzenegger and targets all three heads of the deltoids. It’s basically a variation of a standard dumbbell shoulder press, but with a rotating movement.

This exercise can improve shoulder mobility and stability because the rotation mimics natural shoulder movement, making it better for your shoulder joint health. If you’re looking for rounded shoulders, then this is a great exercise because you’ll build the front and the sides while also having a high time under tension to increase muscle growth.

1. Set up a bench so it’s about 90 degrees or slightly less. Take a seat and hold a pair of dumbbells at shoulder height with your palms facing you. Like at the top of a biceps curl with your elbows in front of your torso.
2. Squeeze your shoulder blades together on your back, arch up your chest some, and tighten your abs to engage your core.
3. Breathe out as you press the dumbbells overhead by rotating your palms outward during the movement so they face forward at the top. Fully extend your arms at the top, but stop short of your elbows completely locking out.
4. Breathe in as you reverse the motion by slowly lowering the dumbbells back down while gradually rotating your palms back to the starting position.

Dumbbell Overhead Shoulder Fly

This exercise will highly isolate your front and side delts. The wide arching motion keeps tension on the deltoids throughout the range of motion, making it great for shoulder shape and definition if you want those capped aesthetic shoulders.

Use lighter weights when doing this exercise. It’ll give your shoulder muscles a different stimulus and angle of attack compared to standard presses, which can help your muscle growth in a different way. If you have bad shoulders then you may want to skip this one.

1. Set up a bench so it’s at about 90 degrees or slightly less. Take a seat on the bench and hold a pair of dumbbells in each hand.
2. Press the dumbbells directly overhead with your palms facing forward, your arms lengthened out but your elbows not locked out. Squeeze your shoulder blades together on your back, arch up your chest, and tighten your abs to engage your core.
3. With a slight bend in your elbows, breathe out as you slowly lower your arms and dumbbells out in a wide arching motion like half of a circle. Stop when your dumbbells reach about shoulder height or slightly above.
4. Breathe out as you reverse the same motion and bring the dumbbells back up. Don’t bring the dumbbells all the way together at the top, but stop when they reach directly over your shoulders.

Dumbbell Iron Cross

This dumbbell exercise hits both your front and side delts in one move, making it a great way to mix up your shoulder workouts to increase muscle growth. It will also enhance shoulder control and stability since you’ll have to hold and transition between these positions, which will require shoulder endurance and motor control.

Use a lighter weight on this exercise, but you’ll have a higher time under tension giving you a deep pump.

1. Stand tall with your feet shoulder width apart, the dumbbells in front of your thighs, and your palms facing your body. Squeeze your shoulder blades together on your back, arch up your chest, and tighten your abs to engage your core.
2. Like a dumbbell front raise, bring the dumbbells straight up in front of you so they’re shoulder height.
3. Next, cross to a lateral raise by moving your arms outward so you’re now in a T position like the top of a lateral raise.
4. Slowly return back to the front by bringing the dumbbells back to the front raised position.
5. Lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position.

Side (Lateral) Shoulder Exercises

Dumbbell Upright Row

This exercise targets your side delts and your upper traps for wider shoulders with separation definition. But I would skip the dumbbell upright row if you have poor mobility in your shoulders (lifting your arms with internal shoulder rotation can be hard on some lifters).

Pro Tip: Widen your grip slightly to better target your side delts and reduce shoulder impingement risk. Keep your wrists below your elbows to avoid shoulder joint stress and keep good form.

1. Stand tall with your feet shoulder-width apart, dumbbells in front of your thighs, and your palms facing your body with your arms fully extended. Squeeze your shoulder blades on your back together, arch up your chest, and tighten your abs.
2. Breathe out as you lift your elbows first by pulling the dumbbells straight up along your body. Focus on leading with your elbows and not your hands.
3. Raise the dumbbells until your elbows are at or just above shoulder height. I don’t recommend going too high to protect your shoulder joint.
4. At the top, pause briefly and squeeze your delts and traps to maximize the contraction.
5. Breathe out as you slowly lower the dumbbells back to the restarting position in a controlled motion. Use a moderately heavy weight and do your best to avoid swinging with your body.

Dumbbell Side Raises

This exercise is terrific for isolating and building your side lateral deltoids. It will enhance shoulder definition and aesthetics by giving you that wide, rounded shoulder look. It also improves shoulder symmetry by balancing out the front and the back.

Pro Tip: Use a lighter weight dumbbell and use strict control to keep tension on your side delts. Tilt your pinky slightly upward at the top like pouring water from a jug to increase lateral delt activation. Keep your wrist neutral and avoid shrugging with your traps to keep it isolated on your side delts.

1. Get in the starting position by standing tall with a dumbbell in each hand at your sides, your palms facing inward towards your body, and keeping a slight bend in your elbows. Squeeze your shoulder blades on your back together, arch up your chest, and tighten your abs.
2. Breathe out as you raise the dumbbells out to your sides until they reach shoulder height. Focus on leading with your elbows, not your hands. Don’t allow your arms to drift out in front of your body, since you’ll be compensating by using more of your traps.
3. Pause briefly at the top and squeeze your side delts.
4. Breathe in as you slowly lower the dumbbells back down in a controlled motion. Don’t just let them drop. Avoid swinging or using momentum to maximize the exercise.

Dumbbell Side Raises with Bench

This is a variation of the dumbbell side raise that I sometimes like to do to mix things up. By sitting on a bench like this, you’ll only be able to lower the dumbbells so far, and you won’t be able to go all the way down to your sides.

This forces you to keep tension on the side delts throughout the entire movement. It will also reduce momentum or swinging since your legs can’t be used. You’ll need to use a lighter dumbbell weight than you would standing since you’ll have more tension on the muscle.

1. Take a seat sideways on a flat bench holding a light pair of dumbbells in each hand. Squeeze your shoulder blades on your back together, arch up your chest, and tighten your abs to engage your core.
2. Bring the dumbbells out to the sides so they are at shoulder height. Tilt your wrists so your thumbs are below your pinkies. And make sure the dumbbells are straight out to the sides and not coming in front of your body.
3. Breathe in as you slowly lower the dumbbells down towards the bench. Stop short of the dumbbells touching the bench.
4. Breathe out as you raise the dumbbells back up to shoulder height. Do your best to avoid using your body to help by jerking the weight up.

Rear (Posterior) Shoulder Exercises

Dumbbell Reverse Flyes

This exercise isolates your rear posterior delts. This is a very commonly under-trained shoulder head. It’ll help improve your posture by strengthening your upper back and reversing the rounded slouching shoulders.

Pro Tip: Avoid using momentum and go with lighter weights so you can have strict control throughout the movement. Focus on pulling with your elbows, not your hands, to better engage your rear delts. Keep your neck neutral and don’t crane your head upward.

1. Get in the starting position by hinging forward at your hips with a flat back and your knees bent. The dumbbells should be hanging below your chest with your palms facing towards your legs.
2. Tighten your abs to engage your core and take stress off your lower back. Squeeze your shoulder blades together and arch out your chest.
3. Breathe out as you raise the dumbbells out to the sides in a wide arc. Keep a slight elbow bend and your arms in a fixed position throughout the movement.
4. Pause briefly at the top and hold for a second to fully contract your rear delts. Then, breathe in as you slowly lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position in a controlled fashion.

Incline Dumbbell Reverse Flyes

This is a variation of the dumbbell reverse fly using an inclined bench. It’ll help to take stress off your lower back and reduce momentum.

Pro Tip: Keep your chest in contact with the bench the whole time to reduce momentum and lower back recruitment. Use a lighter weight and focus on doing controlled reps and isolating your rear delts. Keep the motion wide to target the rear delts more than your traps.

1. Set up an adjustable bench at about a 45-degree incline. Lay face down on it with your chest supported and your feet on the floor, with your knees slightly bent. Keep your neck in a neutral position so it’s in line with your spine.
2. Let the dumbbells hang down below your shoulders with your palms at a slight angle in towards your body. Keep your elbows slightly bent.
3. Lift the dumbbells out in a wide arch at about a 45-degree angle with your body. Try not to bring them directly out to the side since you’ll start to use more of your traps.
4. Pause at the top, focus on squeezing your rear delts and shoulder blades.
5. Slowly lower the dumbbells back down to return to the start position with a controlled motion. Do your best to avoid letting the dumbbells drop down.

Incline Dumbbell High Rows

This exercise will target your rear delts, as well as some rhomboids and upper traps. I prefer doing these on an incline bench to reduce momentum and lower back strain.

Pro Tip: Focus on leading up with your elbows and not your hands to better isolate your rear delts. Don’t let your traps take over the exercise, so minimize any shrugging with your shoulders.

1. Set up a bench at about a 45-degree angle and lie face down on it with your chest supported, your feet on the floor, and your knees slightly bent.
2. In the starting position, hold the dumbbells beneath you with your arms extended and your palms facing behind you. Squeeze your shoulder blades together, arch out your chest, and tighten your abs.
3. Pull the dumbbells up and outward towards the sky by flaring your elbows out wide. Stop when the dumbbells about reach chest/shoulder height. Your elbows should be above your wrists at the top.
4. Squeeze at the top by pinching your shoulder blades together and contracting your rear delts.
5. Breathe in as you slowly lower the dumbbells back down to the starting position and keeping tension on the muscle throughout the descent.

How to Maximize Mechanical Tension in Shoulder Workouts for Better Results

Use these tips to increase results in your shoulder workouts:

Progressive Overload – This is the gradual increase of stress placed on your muscles, which forces them to adapt and grow stronger, leading to consistent gains in size and strength. Gradually try to increase your weight reps or sets over time.⁵

For your shoulders, aim for smaller consistent jumps with a load of 2.5 to 5 pound increments. Mechanical tension increases when your shoulder muscles are forced to handle greater demands than what they’re used to.

Slow Controlled Reps – Use a 2-3 second eccentric lowering phase and a controlled lifting concentric phase. This increases the time under tension, which puts more mechanical stress on your shoulder muscles, giving you better muscle growth.⁶

Shoulder muscles respond well to longer, slower tempos because they are smaller and fatigue faster. Avoid swinging the dumbbells because you want more time under tension so you get better muscle growth.

Train Close to Failure – Do you sets to (or close to) failure, especially in your final sets or isolation shoulder dumbbell exercises like lateral raises or rear delt flies. This high effort causes a higher recruitment of motor units, especially the fast-twitch muscle fibers.⁷

You can also use drop sets, supersets, or rest-pause sets to push intensity without sacrificing form.

Full Range of Motion – Using a full range of motion increases muscle fiber stretch and total mechanical tension per rep. You’ll get a deeper stretch at the bottom of movements and a more complete contraction as well. This will generate the most force in your muscles, maximizing mechanical tension.⁸

Repetition Ranges & Load – Do your training across a wide spectrum of repetition ranges (1-20+). It is best if you’re trying to get total development of your shoulder muscles. Main focus should be on a medium range (6-12 reps) because it provides a good combination of mechanical tension and metabolic stress.

Use low reps (<6 reps) to recruit fast-twitch muscle fibers and build muscle power and force. Higher reps (20+) tend to recruit slow-twitch fibers and build endurance. Mixing up your reps helps to make sure you’re maximally loading all of the fiber types.

Volume & Frequency – High volumes of resistance training will optimize muscle growth. As a general guideline, beginners might aim for 40-70 repetitions per muscle group each session, but advanced lifters may need double that amount. Higher training frequencies can give you more benefits, at least in the short term.

Split routines (e.g. having a shoulder day) will give you a higher amount of per muscle group volume per session. Your volume should be progressively increased over a training cycle with periods of lower volume (deloading) for regular recovery.