How to permanently disable automatically changing wallpaper on Xiaomi: 5 proven ways

The automatic wallpaper feature in Xiaomi’s MIUI-based smartphones has become one of the most controversial among users. On the one hand, it adds visual diversity to the lock screen and desktop. On the other, many complain about unpredictable background changes, increased battery consumption and even the accidental activation of the mobile Internet to download new images. If you are among those who are annoyed by this feature, our article will help get rid of it once and for all.

MIUI

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Unauthorized activation after MIUI updates

Before you start, make sure that your device has the latest version installed. MIUI (relevant MIUI 12–14 Some methods may not work on very outdated firmware (below). MIUI Please also note: on devices with POCO Launcher or custom shells path to settings may differ.

1. Standard method: through wallpaper settings

The most obvious and quickest method is to use the built-in MIUI tools, which are suitable for most Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO models running MIUI 12 and later.

Open Settings → Wallpaper (or make a long tap on your desktop and select "Wallpaper"). At the top of the screen you will see tabs:

• 📱 Lock screen – here background images are configured to lock
• 🏠 Home - Wallpaper for the main screen
• 🔄 Automatic shift is an option that we need to disable

Go to Autoshift tab and move the slider to off position. If there is no slider, tap the gear icon (⚙️) in the upper right corner and select Turn off automatic shift.

On some devices (such as the Redmi Note 11 or POCO X4 Pro), instead of the slider, you will have a "Manage" button. Click on it and uncheck the "Automatically Update Wallpaper" button.

Long tap on the desktop → Wallpaper.|Switch to the tab "Automatic change"|Turning off the slider/tick|Rebooting the device (optional)-->

⚠️ Attention: On devices with MIUI 13.5+ After disabling this option, the system can offer "recommended wallpaper" every time you unlock the screen. → Notifications → System notifications → Wallpaper and turn off the display of notifications.

2. Disconnection via "Themes" (for MIUI 12-14)

If the standard method didn’t work, try turning off dynamic wallpapers through the Themes app, which is especially relevant for devices with MIUI 12.5 and MIUI 13, where wallpaper settings are duplicated in multiple places.

Open the Themes app (Brush and Palette icon). In the bottom panel, select the Wallpaper tab, then tap the profile icon (or three dots) in the top right corner and select Settings. Here, find the Auto Change Wallpaper option and turn it off.

On some firmware, the path may differ:

• 🔍 Tab “Review" → "Wallpaper" → gear ⚙️ → "The driver"
• 🎨 Section "My wallpaper" → "Settings" → "Dynamic wallpaper"

If the Themes app doesn't have a turn off option, try resetting the wallpaper settings to factory ones. To do so, in the same menu, click Restore Default Wallpaper. This will delete all uploaded background images and reset the automatic change settings.

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After turning off automatic wallpaper change, clear the Themes app cache in Settings → Apps → Application Management → Topics → Clear the cache. This will prevent the feature from spontaneously turning on after updates.

3. Hidden settings: via ADB (for advanced users)

If none of the previous methods worked, you will have to use USB debugging and ADB command. This method is suitable for all Xiaomi devices, but requires a computer connection and basic knowledge of working with the console.

First, turn on the developer mode:

1. Go to Settings. → The phone.
2. Tap 7 times on the MIUI version until the notification “You became a developer” appears.
3. Return to Settings → More → For developers and enable USB Debugging

Now connect your phone to your PC, install ADB Tools and execute on the command line:

adb shell settings put global wallpaper_change_interval 0


adb shell settings put secure wallpaper_change_enabled 0

These commands force the wallpaper interval and the autoshift function itself to be disabled at the system level, so that the changes take effect, restart the device.

⚠️ Attention: Use ADB It can cause the system to be unstable if you type in the wrong commands. Do not edit other settings put unless you are sure of their purpose. MIUI The settings can be reset - they will have to be reused.

Disconnection through system applications (for MIUI 14)

In the latest versions of MIUI 14, Xiaomi has moved some of the wallpaper settings to the Security app, which is related to optimizing battery consumption and background activity. To turn off automatic wallpaper change here, follow the instructions:

Open Settings → Applications → Application Management and find Wallpaper (or Wallpaper Carousel on global firmware) in the list. Tap it and select Battery. Turn off options here:

• 🔋 Auto-start
• 🔄 Background activity
• 📶 Mobile data (if the wallpaper is loaded via the Internet)

Then go back to the main menu of the Wallpaper app and manually install static wallpapers. The system will no longer be able to change them, as background processes will be blocked.

For POCO F4, Xiaomi 12T and others with MIUI 14, also check the settings in Security → Optimization → Background Activity. There may be a separate switch for Dynamic Wallpaper.

5 Why wallpaper turns on itself: how to prevent

Many users complain that after updating MIUI or rebooting the device, the automatic wallpaper change turns on again, due to the fact that Xiaomi considers this feature “useful” and resets its settings to factory settings.

Reason 1: MIUI updates: When you install new firmware versions, some system applications (including Wallpaper and Themes) are reset, so that this does not happen:

• 📥 Before updating, back up the settings through Settings → Additionally. → Backup
• 🔧 After the update, immediately check the wallpaper settings and, if necessary, turn off the driver again.
• 🛡️ Turn off automatic update downloads in Settings → The phone. → Updating the system → Three points. → Settings

Reason 2: Sync with Mi. If you're logged in to Mi Account, wallpaper settings can sync with the cloud, where the autoshift function is enabled by default, to fix this:

1. Go to Settings → Accounts → Mi Account → Synchronization
2. Turn off sync for Wallpaper or Theme item
3. Log out of your account and log in again (this will reset your cloud settings)

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If you use custom firmware (e.g. xiaomi.eu or PixelExperience), the problem of spontaneously turning on wallpaper may be due to modified system applications, in which case only manually removing the Wallpaper Carousel apk via ADB or TWRP will help.

6. Alternative solutions: third-party launchers and wallpaper

If you haven’t been able to turn off dynamic wallpaper in the standard way, consider using third-party launchers, which completely replace the MIUI system shell and allow you to customize the wallpaper to your liking.

Popular launchers with support for static wallpaper:

• 🌈 Nova Launcher – flexible settings, support for animations and gestures
• 📱 Lawnchair is an open source lightweight launcher
• 🎨 Microsoft Launcher - Windows integration, stable operation
• 🔄 POCO Launcher – the official launcher from Xiaomi, but without dynamic wallpaper

After the launcher is installed:

1. Set it as the default launcher (a suggestion will appear when you first start)
2. Set static wallpaper through launcher settings
3. Turn off system wallpaper in Settings → Wallpaper → Set by default

For minimalist lovers, Wallpaper Changer (from Google Play) is a good tool, which allows you to manually adjust the wallpaper change on a schedule, but without automatically downloading new images from the Internet.

⚠️ Note: Some launchers (such as Nova Launcher) may conflict with system wallpaper MIUI. If after installing the launcher background still changes, try to disable the system application "Wallpaper" through ADB Adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.miui.miwallpaper This will completely block the standard wallpaper, but can lead to errors when trying to change them through the system settings.

FAQ: Frequent questions about turning off dynamic wallpaper