How to switch keyboard to English on Xiaomi phone: all ways

Why Xiaomi can’t change the keyboard language?

Are you trying to enter a Wi-Fi password, register on a foreign site or just want to type in English, but the keyboard stubbornly remains in Russian? The problem is familiar to many owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones. Most often this happens due to incorrect system settings, conflict layouts or features of the proprietary keyboard Mi Keyboard.

In this article, we will discuss 5 working ways to switch the keyboard to English, from basic to hidden MIUI functions. And also explain why sometimes the language resets itself and how to fix it once and for all. If you are a user of Xiaomi 12T, Redmi Note 11 or any other model on MIUI 14, the manual will be suitable for you.

Before you start, check that the problem may not be the settings, but the app you use. Some messengers (like Telegram or WhatsApp) may force you to set the default keyboard language. Try switching elsewhere, like Notes or your browser.

Method 1: Quick switching with a space

The simplest method that not everyone knows about is that Xiaomi's Mi Keyboard keyboard supports instantaneous switching between languages while typing.

1. Open any field to enter (for example, a message in an SMS or a search bar).
2. Hold the space key of 1-2 seconds with your finger.
3. In the menu that appears, select English (US) or another language you want.

If this doesn't work, then the English layout hasn't been added to the system.

💡

On some models (e.g. POCO F4), you can swipe left on the space key to switch.

Note that if you have a third-party keyboard (like Gboard or SwiftKey), the combination may be different. 🌐 or EN/RU keyboard.

Method 2: Adding English layout to system settings

If you don't have a quick switch, then English is not added to the list of available languages.

1. Open Settings → Additional → Language and input.
2. Slip on the current keyboard (or keyboard management in newer versions of MIUI).
3. Select the Mi Keyboard (or your current keyboard).
4. Press Entering Languages → Add tongue.
5. In the list, find English (US) or English (UK) and tick.

After adding the language will appear in the switch menu (see Method 1). If English is not on the list, update the keyboard via the Play Market or reset its settings (more on this below).

✅ Make sure the internet is connected (you need to download the language packet)

✅ Check if the keyboard has been updated to the latest version

✅ Restart your phone if your language doesn’t appear after adding it.-->

On some firmware (e.g. MIUI Global for Xiaomi 13), English can be hidden behind the All Languages item.

Method 3: Configure the keyboard via Gboard (if installed)

Many Xiaomi users are replacing the standard keyboard with Google's Gboard, and if you have one, the algorithm is different:

1. Open any text field and tap the icon ⚙️ (gear on the keyboard.
2. Select Languages → Add a keyboard.
3. Scroll down to English and add the desired option (e.g. US QWERTY).
4. Return to the languages menu and turn on the option to switch between languages.

Now to change the layout, just click on the globe icon 🌐 or swipe over the space (depending on the settings).

Mi Keyboard (standard)|Gboard (Google)|SwiftKey|Another.|I don't know.-->

If you add your language to Gboard, you still don't switch, check:

• 🔹 Does Gboard turn on as default keyboard (Settings) → System system → Language and input → Current keyboard).
• 🔹 Is the keyboard updated to the latest version (go to the Play Market and check for updates).
• 🔹 Is there a conflict with other keyboards (turn off unnecessary in the settings).

Method 4: Reset keyboard settings (if nothing works)

If the language is added but not switched, or the keyboard is getting stuck in Russian, resetting will help. This is safe and will not affect other phone data.

Instructions for Mi Keyboard:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find the Mi Keyboard (or com.miui.miuikeyboard) and tap it.
3. Select Warehouse. → Clear the data.
4. Confirm the action and restart the phone.

After reset, you will have to add languages again (see Method 2). If you use Gboard, clean the cache in the same way.

On Xiaomi models with MIUI 13 and older, resetting the keyboard can cause a user dictionary to reset.Save the important words in advance!

Method 5: Forced language change through system settings

If the problem is not the keyboard, but the system language of the phone, the English layout can be blocked, for example, on some firmware for Redmi, when choosing the Russian language of the system, foreign layouts are automatically disabled.

To fix this:

1. Go to Settings → Additional → Language and Region.
2. Add English (United States) to the list of languages (even if it is not the main language).
3. Go back to the keyboard settings and check the availability of the English layout.

This trick often helps on Xiaomi with MIUI for Russia, where some features are limited to regional settings.

Why does the keyboard spontaneously switch to Russian?

Many Xiaomi users are faced with the fact that the layout is reset in Russian after:

• 🔄 Phone reboots.
• 🔋 Battery optimization (if the keyboard is in the list of sleeper apps).
• 📱 Updates MIUI.
• 🔑 Changes in the main language of the system.

To fix this:

1. Add keyboard to optimization exceptions: Settings → Battery → Battery Optimization → All apps → Find the keyboard and select Without Limits.
2. Turn off auto-update keyboard in the Play Market if it causes crashes.
3. Install a third-party keyboard (such as Gboard) if the problem recurs.

💡

If the English layout disappears after the MIUI update, try to roll back to the previous version of the firmware or wait for a patch from Xiaomi.

On some models (such as the POCO X3 Pro), it helps to disable the Smart Input function in the keyboard settings, which tries to guess the language you want, but often gets it wrong.

What to do if English never came?

If none of these methods worked, check:

⚠️ On Xiaomi phones with Chinese firmware (for example, for the China market) ROM) It might not be English-supported on the keyboard, and then you can only flash it on Global. ROM.

Alternative solutions:

• 📱 Install a third-party keyboard (Gboard, SwiftKey, Fleksy).
• 🔧 Check your phone for viruses (some malware blocks the layout change).
• 📲 Reset all phone settings to factory (Settings) → The phone. → Resetting settings).
• 🔄 Update. MIUI Up to the latest version through Settings → Updating the system.

If the problem persists, contact Xiaomi’s service center – it may be a hardware failure (for example, a malfunction of the keyboard sensor).

FAQ: Frequent questions about changing the keyboard language to Xiaomi