Where to look for widgets on Xiaomi smartphones: hidden menus and life hacks MIUI

Xiaomi widgets are mini-programs that display useful information directly on the home screen: weather, calendar, notes or quick settings. But many users face the problem: once they update MIUI or reset, widgets suddenly disappear, and the standard ways to add them do not work. In this article, we will examine all possible places where widgets hide on Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones, from the obvious to the hidden.

The feature of MIUI firmware is that the location of the widgets depends on the shell version (12, 13 or 14) and the device model. For example, on the Xiaomi 13 Pro with MIUI 14, the widget menu opens with a long tap across the screen, and on the Redmi Note 10 with MIUI 12.5 through a special icon. We have collected current methods for all versions, including Android 13/14.

1. Standard method: long press on the main screen

The most common method is to call the widget menu through a long tap (press and hold) in the free space of the main screen.

• 📱 Nana MIUI 14 (Android 13/14): hold your finger 1–2 seconds until the menu with the items "Widgets", "Wallpaper" and "Screen settings" appears».
• 🔄 Nana MIUI 12.5 and older: Double tap (quick tap twice) may be required on the free seat, followed by selecting "Widgets».
• ⚙️ In some models (POCO F5, Redmi K60) First the wallpaper menu opens – scroll left to see the tab “Widgets».

If after a long press the menu does not appear:

1. Check to see if Light Mode (Settings → Special Opportunities → Light Mode) is activated.
2. Make sure there is free space on the screen – if all the cells are occupied by icons, the widget menu will not open.

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If the widgets don't appear after the MIUI update, try rebooting your smartphone, which often solves the launcher cache problem.

2. Hidden menu of widgets through the notification panel

Few people know, but Xiaomi has an alternative way to access widgets through the notification bar, which works even if the standard menu does not open:

1. Swipe down from the top edge of the screen to open the notification bar.
2. Click on the Edit icon (pencil) in the lower right corner.
3. Scroll down to the Widgets block – all available mini-programs will be displayed here.
4. Press the desired widget and drag it to the main screen.

This is especially useful for owners of POCO M5 and Redmi 12, where the standard widget menu often “gluts” after updates. Please note: this section only displays system widgets (weather, calendar, music).

3. widgets in the app menu: where to look on POCO and Redmi

On POCO smartphones and some Redmi models (like the Redmi Note 11 Pro+), widgets are hidden in the app menu to find them:

1. Open the app menu (swipe up from the bottom edge of the screen).
2. Slip on the Widget icon (usually located in the upper right corner next to the search).
3. Select the desired widget and hold it to drag it to the main screen.

If there are no Widget icons:

• 🔍 Check if it's hidden in the menu settings. Go to Settings. → Main screen screen → Settings of the application menu.
• 📲 On some firmware (MIUI for POCO) widgets are only available via a long tap on the app icon (for example, hold the Calendar icon to see its widgets).

4 Third-party app widgets: why they are not on the list

A common problem: the user installs an app (like Google Keep or Yandex Weather), but his widget doesn't appear in the menu.

Google apps (like Google Calendar or Google Fit) may require installing the Google App from the Play Market. Without it, Google services widgets don’t work on Xiaomi.

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If the third-party app widget doesn't appear, first check its settings in the Battery section. MIUI aggressively optimizes the background work, which blocks the widget updates.

5.Widgets in the "Second Space" mode and for the guest profile

Xiaomi has a “Second Space” (dual account) and guest mode, and the widgets are set up separately:

• 🔑 For Second Space: Switch to second space (swipe by profile icon in notification bar) Add widgets in the standard way - they do not sync with the main space.

guest-mode

1. Go to Settings → System and device → Additional → Guest mode.
2. Activate the option “Allow widgets”.

Note: Widgets associated with your Mi Account (such as Mi Fit or Mi Home) will not work in the second space, and you will need a separate login.

Free space on the main screen|Lack of easy regime|Updated version MIUI|Permission for background work for the application-->

6. Widgets on the locked screen: how to add and remove

You can even put widgets on Xiaomi on the lock screen.

1. Go to Settings → Lock screen.
2. Select "Widgets on the lock screen".
3. Activate the desired widgets (available: weather, calendar, music, steps).

To remove the widget from the locked screen:

• 🔒 Swipe the widget left or right on the lock screen.
• 🗑️ Click on the basket icon that appears on top.

⚠️ Warning: Widgets on the lock screen display personal information (messages, calendar) if you use a pattern lock or a graphical key. PIN, Turn them off in security settings to avoid data leakage.

7. Reset widgets to factory settings

If the widgets start to glit (don't update, disappear after the reboot), it will help to reset their settings, it will not delete the widgets themselves, but return their settings to the factory:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Slip on the three dots in the top right corner and select Reset App Settings.
3. Confirm the reset - this will clear the cache and settings of all widgets.

After discharge:

• 🔄 System application widgets (Weather, Calendar) will be restored automatically.
• ⚠️ Widgets of third-party applications (Spotify, Telegram) will have to be added again.

⚠️ Note: On some models (Xiaomi) 12T, POCO X5 Pro) resetting app settings also deletes the social media login data.

8 Widgets on MIUI without launcher: what to do if they are missing

In rare cases, widgets disappear completely, even system widgets, due to a failure of the MIUI Home launcher.

• 🛠️ Reinstallation of the launcher: Download APK latest MIUI Home (e.g. from APKMirror) Install the file by pre-authorizing installation from unknown sources.
• 🔧 Cache cleanup: Settings → Annexes → Application management → MIUI Home → Warehouse → Clear the cache
• 📱 Resetting screen settings: Settings → Main screen screen → Reset settings (This method will remove all widgets and icon locations!)