How to quickly change the keyboard layout on Xiaomi: 5 ways + error solving

Why Xiaomi can’t change the layout – and how to fix it

Are you trying to type a message on Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 or POCO X5 Pro, but instead of the Russian alphabet, Latin letters are stubbornly printed? Or vice versa, the keyboard is stuck in Cyrillic when you need an English layout? The problem is familiar to most owners of Xiaomi smartphones, especially after updating MIUI or resetting. In this article, we will discuss all possible ways to change the layout, from basic to hidden functions that are not written in the official instructions.

It’s important to understand that Xiaomi’s layout is managed on three levels: the system keyboard (usually Gboard or Mi Keyboard), the interface language, and regional settings. Often users confuse these concepts by trying to change the language of the phone instead of changing the keyboard layout, we’ll show you how to adjust each of these settings correctly, and we’ll also tell you what to do if the Suddenly language switch button disappears or the keyboard “forgets” settings after rebooting.

We'll focus on the common mistakes that beginners make, for example, many people don't know that MIUI 14 has changed the way the keyboard is set compared to MIUI 12, and some firmware for POCO and Redmi lacks a standard layout switch, and we'll also look at cases where the smartphone persistently returns the English layout after an update, a common problem for owners of global firmware devices (Global ROM).

Method 1: Quickly switching the layout on the keyboard

The most obvious method is to use the built-in language change button directly on the keyboard, but its location and appearance depend on the version of MIUI and the type of keyboard (Gboard, Mi Keyboard or third-party).

• 🔹 On Gboard (Google Keyboard): The Tongue Switch button looks like a globe icon (🌐) And it's next to the space. You can press it once to cycle through the layouts that are available.
• 🔹 On the Mi Keyboard (standard Xiaomi keyboard): the icon can be in the form of two letters (for example, "RU"./EN») Or the same world, in some versions. MIUI The button is hidden behind a long press on the space.
• 🔹 Third-party keyboards (e.g. SwiftKey): usually use a swipe space left/right or a separate button with the country flag.

If the switch button has disappeared, check the keyboard settings:

1. Open any field to enter text (such as notes or a message).
2. Touch the gear badge (⚙️) on the keyboard to go to its settings.
3. Find Languages or Language & Input and make sure that the required layouts (Russian, English, etc.) are included.

💡

If the language switching button is gone after the MIUI update, try resetting the keyboard settings: Settings → Applications → Application Management → Keyboard → Storage → Clear data.

Method 2: Configure layouts in system parameters

If you don't have a quick switch or if the keyboard is unstable, change the settings directly in the system.

1. Go to Settings → Additional settings → Language and input → Current keyboard.
2. Select the keyboard you use (such as Gboard or Mi Keyboard).
3. Click Languages and enable the required layouts by dragging them into priority order (the first one on the list will be active by default).

In MIUI 14, the path has changed a bit.

Settings → System settings → Language and region → Keyboard → Keyboard management

Please note that if the language you want is missing, you must first add it.

1. In the same menu, click Add the keyboard.
2. Select a language (e.g. Russian or English (USA)).
3. Download the language pack if the system offers to do so.

Method 3: Reset keyboard settings to factory

Sometimes the keyboard starts to "glut": it doesn't save the layout, it switches between languages arbitrarily or ignores the settings altogether, and in these cases, resetting the keyboard helps. Here's how to do it safely:

• 📱 For Gboard: Go to Settings → Annexes → App management. Find Gboard in the list and select Warehouse. click Clear Data (this will delete all custom dictionaries, but save languages).

Mi Keyboard

1. Similarly, find the Mi Keyboard app in the settings.
2. Choose Clear the cache and Clear the data.
3. Reboot your smartphone.

⚠️ Note: After resetting the keyboard, you will have to retrain the keyboard to auto-replace and add frequently used words. We recommend backing up the dictionary before reset (if the keyboard supports this feature).

Save important texts from the clipboard |

Take photos of user words (if any) |

Remember the current layouts |

Check for backup in Mi Cloud (for Mi Keyboard)-->

Method 4: Change the language of the system (if the layout does not change)

If the keyboard persists in returning to one language regardless of settings, the problem may lie in the system language of the interface, for example, on some Xiaomi firmware (especially China ROM), the system language is given priority, ignoring the keyboard settings.

1. Open Settings → System settings → Language and region.
2. In the language section, select the language you want (for example, Russian or English (United States)).
3. Restart the device – this will apply the changes to all system applications.

Important: some models (such as Xiaomi 13T or Redmi K60) may require reconfiguration of the keyboard after changing the system language. Also note that in China ROM without root rights it is impossible to install Russian as the main language - you will need to install Global ROM firmware.

⚠️ Note: If you are using China ROM If you want Russian, don't try to change it through your settings, it will crash. ROM via Fastboot or contact the service center.

Method 5: Use of gestures and hot keys

Few people know, but MIUI can assign gestures or hotkeys to change the layout quickly, which is especially useful if you type in two languages a lot.

• 👆 Swipe by space (for Gboard): Open the Gboard settings. Go to Settings → Gestures → Swipe by space. Turn on the option and select the action Turn the language.

Double tap on Shift

Mi Keyboard

1. In the keyboard settings, find Additional settings → Hot keys.
2. Activate the option of Double-Tap Shift to change the language.

MIUI 13/14 also introduced the automatic layout switching feature for the first character, for example, if you start a word with a Latin letter, the keyboard will automatically switch to English layout to enable it:

Keyboard settings → Text input → Automatic language switching

Solving common problems

Even after setting up the layout correctly, Xiaomi may not work properly, and let’s look at typical situations and ways to fix them:

One of the things that deserves a special attention is when the layout automatically returns to English after the screen is locked, and this is due to the MIUI Smart Lock feature, which resets some settings to save energy, to turn off this behavior:

1. Go to Settings → Battery and Performance → Battery Consumption Management.
2. Find your keyboard in the list and select No Limits.
3. Reset the device.

💡

If the layout problem has occurred after the MIUI update, try rolling back the keyboard version via APK or wait for a patch from Xiaomi. Often, language bugs are fixed in the next firmware builds.

FAQ: Frequent questions about changing layout to Xiaomi