How to add a photo to the desktop Xiaomi Redmi: all ways + problem solving

Personalization of a smartphone starts with a desktop, which is the one you see every time you unlock the Xiaomi Redmi. But standard MIUI wallpaper quickly gets boring, and trying to put your favorite photo often ends up with an error of "Impossible to install" or automatic cropping of the image. Why does this happen and how to get around the system limitations?

In this article, 5 proven ways to install any photo on Redmi desktop (including Note 12/13, 10C, 9A and others), even if MIUI stubbornly refuses to accept it. We will examine both standard methods through the gallery, and workarounds for users with or without root rights, and also a table of methods compatibility with MIUI versions and answers to frequent questions, such as why wallpapers are compressed or why you can not install live wallpaper.

Why Xiaomi Redmi does not allow you to put any photo on your desktop?

The problem lies in the policy of MIUI, the Xiaomi brand shell, which automatically applies several restrictions:

• 📏 Fixed aspect ratio. MIUI requires that the wallpaper conforms to the screen resolution (e.g, 1080×2400 For the Redmi Note 11). If the photo doesn’t fit, the system cuts or stretches it.
• 🔒 Blocking “inappropriate” formats. JPEG high-resolution or PNG Transparency may not be established due to internal restrictions.
• 🤖 Performance optimization: on budget models (e.g. Redmi) 9A) MIUI compresses wallpaper to reduce the load on the processor.

In addition, some versions of MIUI (e.g. MIUI 12.5 for global firmware) lack the option "Install as wallpaper" when viewing photos in the gallery. This is not a bug, but a feature of the interface - the developers have moved the function in the themes menu.

⚠️ Note: If you use Redmi with custom firmware (e.g. Pixel Experience), standard methods may not work.

Method 1: Standard installation through gallery (MIUI 13/14)

The simplest method that works on most Xiaomi Redmi models (including Note 10 Pro, 11 Lite, 12 Pro+) is suitable for photos with a resolution close to the native screen resolution of your smartphone.

1. Open the Gallery app and select the photo you want.
2. Slap the icon. ⋮ (Three dots) in lower right corner → Choose Set How to Install.
3. In the menu that opens, select: 🖼️ Desktop wallpaper (main screen only) 🔒 Lock screen wallpaper (lockscreen only) 📱 Desktop wallpaper and lock screen (both screens)

Ready.

If you install as not, update the Gallery app via Google Play or use an alternative method (see below). On some firmware (e.g. MIUI 12 for Redmi 9T), this option is hidden in the Share menu.

Check the resolution of the photo (must be at least 1920px on the long side)

Reboot your smartphone

Update the Gallery app to the latest version

Try a different format (JPEG instead of PNG)

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Method 2: Installation via the Themes menu (for MIUI 14 and later)

In the latest versions of MIUI, the wallpaper change feature has been moved to the Topics section, which is suitable if the gallery does not have the "Install as" option, or if you want to apply wallpaper to all system screens (including the notification panel).

1. Open Settings → Themes.
2. Go to the Wallpaper tab (or My Wallpaper in some versions).
3. Slip on the icon + (Add) or My wallpaper → select Gallery.
4. Select a photo and adjust the crop area. Press Apply.

Instructions for Wallpapers Craft:

1. Install the app from Google Play.
2. Open it and choose My Wallpaper. → gallery.
3. Select a photo and tap Install.
4. In the menu that opens, select Desktop Only or Desktop + Lock.

⚠️ Note: Some apps (e.g. Zedge) ask for permission to access files. Do not give access to personal folders unless you are sure about the security of the application. Use only verified sources from Google Play.

Method 4: Manual file copying (for power users)

This method is suitable if you are ready to work with the Xiaomi Redmi file system, it allows you to bypass the limitations of MIUI, but requires accuracy.

Steps:

1. Connect your smartphone to your PC via USB (in file transfer mode).
2. Copy the photo to /storage/emulated/0/MIUI/wallpaper/ If the wallpaper is not available, create it manually.
3. Rename the file to wallpaper.jpg (for desktop) or lockscreen_wallpaper.jpg (lock-screen).
4. Reboot your smartphone. The system will automatically apply wallpaper.

Important: This method may not work for MIUI 14 because of changes in folder structure. If the wallpaper doesn't apply, check the folder's access rights (they should be rw-r).--r--).

Method 5: Use ADB (for advanced users)

If none of the methods worked, you can use the wallpaper via ADB (Android Debug Bridge), which requires USB debugging and is suitable for users familiar with the command line.

Step-by-step:

1. Turn on USB Debugging in Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (shap 7 times according to version, then go back to Settings → Additional → For developers).
2. Connect Redmi to your PC and confirm debugging permission.
3. Copy the photo to /sdcard/MIUI/wallpaper/ (see Method 4).
4. Open the command line (Windows) or terminal (Mac/Linux) and execute: adb shell su cp /sdcard/MIUI/wallpaper/wallpaper.jpg /data/system/users/0/wallpaper chmod 644 /data/system/users/0/wallpaper reboot

After the reboot, the wallpaper will be applied. If the su command does not work, you will need to unlock the bootloader and install Magisk to obtain root rights.

Solving common problems

Even after successfully installing wallpaper, Xiaomi Redmi users face typical problems.

• 🔄 Wallpaper is reset after resetting → Clear the app's cache Themes in Settings → Annexes.
• 📉 Photo compressed or pixelated → Use the image with a resolution not lower 1920×1080. For the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ (permit 2400×1080) Take a photo with an aspect ratio 20:9.
• 🚫 It's impossible to install live wallpaper. → On budget models (Redmi) 9A, 10A) Live wallpaper is disabled at the firmware level. Use static or install Nova Launcher.
• 🔒 Wallpaper does not apply to the lock screen → V MIUI 14 There are different files used for the lock screen and the desktop. lockscreen_wallpaper.jpg (see method 4).

If the problem is not solved, check if the power saving mode is on, and in MIUI it can block wallpaper changes to save resources.

💡

To avoid cropping photos, use online services like ILoveIMG to pre-cut your Redmi resolution, for example, for the Redmi Note 11 Pro (AMOLED, 120 Hz), the optimal wallpaper resolution is 2400×1080.

FAQ: Frequent questions about changing the wallpaper to Xiaomi Redmi

💡

If none of these methods worked, try resetting the launcher settings. To do so, delete the MIUI Launcher app data in Settings → Apps. Attention: this will reset the location of the icons on the desktop!