How to change the screensaver on the lock screen Xiaomi: all ways and life hacks

Why Xiaomi’s Standard Screensaver is Boring and How to Replace It

The lock screen is the first thing you see when you turn on your smartphone. Xiaomi's standard wallpaper, while beautiful, quickly gets boring: monotonous landscapes, abstract patterns or MIUI banners become annoying after a couple of weeks of use. Fortunately, the manufacturer has provided several ways to personalize, from simple change of picture to dynamic wallpaper with paralax effects.

In this article, we will discuss all the current methods of changing the screensaver on the lock screen for Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones (including models on MIUI 12/13/14 and HyperOS). You will learn how to use your own photos, upload wallpaper from the gallery, use live wallpaper and even install different images for locking and the main screen.

Importantly, the procedure may vary slightly depending on the firmware version and device model. For example, on the POCO F5 with HyperOS, the path to wallpaper settings is shorter than on the Redmi Note 10 with MIUI 12.5. But the overall algorithm remains universal.

Method 1: Standard wallpaper change via MIUI settings

The easiest and safest method is to use built-in personalization tools, which are suitable for 90% of users and do not require third-party applications.

1. Open “Settings” (the gear icon on the home screen or in the application menu).
2. Go to the Lock Screen section (on some models it may be called Wallpaper or Personalization).
3. Select the wallpaper of the lock screen.
4. Click Change or Select Wallpaper.
5. Scroll down to My Wallpaper section (there will be a photo from your gallery) or select a category from the suggested ones (Landscapes, Abstraction, Minimalism, etc.).
6. Touch the image you like, then click Apply or Set on the lock screen.

If you want to use your own photo, save it to the gallery beforehand, and the system automatically picks up the optimal framing, but if necessary, you can manually adjust the display area by pulling the corners of the frame.

Save your favorite image in the gallery

Check the resolution of the photo (at least 1080×1920 pixels are recommended)

Close all background applications for smooth interface operation

Make sure the battery is at least 20% charged.

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On some firmware (e.g. MIUI 14 for the global version), after selecting the wallpaper, the system will suggest applying them to both lock and main screens at once. If you need to divide images, uncheck the box from Apply to the home screen.

⚠️ Note: On HyperOS devices (e.g. Xiaomi 14 or X-ray) POCO X6 Pro) the path to settings may be different.Look for the Personalization section → Style. → If you don't find it, search by settings (the magnifying glass icon in the upper right corner).

Method 2: Using a gallery to change the screensaver quickly

Not everyone knows, but Xiaomi can change wallpaper directly from the Gallery app without going into the settings, a method that is convenient if you often experiment with images:

1. Open the Gallery app and find the photo you need.
2. Tap the image to open it in full screen mode.
3. Click on the three dots in the lower right corner (or swipe up if you have gesture control).
4. In the menu, select Set as → Lock screen wallpaper.
5. If necessary, adjust the framing and press Ready.

The advantage of this is speed. The downside is that you don't have access to standard MIUI wallpaper, just your photos. Also note that some models (like the Redmi 9A) have a Set as may not be available.

Once a week.

Once a month

Only when you're bored.

Never change.

Another option-->

If you want your wallpaper to automatically adjust to the time of day (such as dark at night and light at night), install Google Wallpaper from Play Market, which integrates with MIUI and allows you to customize dynamic themes.

Method 3: Live wallpaper and animations on the lock screen

Standard static wallpaper is boring. On Xiaomi smartphones, you can install live wallpaper (animated screensavers) or wallpaper with a paralax effect (when the background slightly shifts when the phone is tilted).

Option A: Integrated live MIUI wallpaper

Some firmware (e.g. MIUI 13 and later) include a collection of animated wallpapers to find them:

1. Go to Settings → Lock screen → Lock screen wallpaper.
2. Scroll down to the section Live Wallpaper or Dynamic.
3. Choose your favorite animation (e.g. Ocean Waves, Starry Sky or Particles).
4. Press Preview, then Apply.

Note: Live wallpaper can increase battery consumption by 5-15% (according to Xiaomi tests on Redmi K50 and POCO F4). If you are critical to battery life, use them only when connected to charging.

Option B: Third-party applications for live wallpaper

If there are few built-in options, install one of these apps from the Play Market:

• 🌊 KWGT Kustom Widget Maker – to create custom animated widgets (requires customization skills).
• 🎨 Wallpapers Craft – a collection of live wallpapers with effects 3D paralax.
• 🌌 AMOLED Live Wallpapers – Optimized Wallpapers AMOLED-screens (saving battery).
• 📱 Zedge – a huge database of static and animated wallpaper with user ratings.

After installation of the annex:

1. Open it and select your favorite wallpaper.
2. Click Set and confirm permissions.
3. In the window that appears, select Only the lock screen or both screens.

⚠️ Note: Some live wallpapers from third-party sources may contain ads or collect data. Before installing, check the reviews and permissions of the application — KWGT Wallpapers Craft, because they do not require access to personal data.

Method 4: Different wallpapers for lock screen and main screen

Many users want different images to be displayed on the lock screen and the home screen, which is not obvious but possible in MIUI.

1. Open Settings → Lock screen → Lock screen Wallpaper.
2. Select the image for the lock screen and click Apply, but don’t close the menu!
3. Take a step back (back button or swipe from right to left).
4. Now select the Main Screen Wallpaper and set a different image.
5. You have different screensavers on two screens.

If this method doesn’t work (e.g., on the POCO X3 Pro with MIUI 12.5), try an alternative method:

• Set wallpaper on the main screen through Settings → Home screen wallpaper.
• Then, change the lock screensaver separately through the Gallery (as described in Method 2).

On some firmware (e.g., the Chinese version of MIUI), the option of separate wallpaper can be blocked, in which case installing the launcher Nova Launcher or Hyperion Launcher, which allows you to customize wallpaper regardless of system limitations, will help.

Method 5: Resetting wallpaper to standard (if something went wrong)

Sometimes, after experimenting with wallpaper, the lock screen starts to glittle: the picture stretches, artifacts appear, or the screensaver disappears altogether, in which case a factory reset will help:

1. Go to Settings → Lock screen → Lock screen wallpaper.
2. Scroll down and select Wallpaper by default or Reset.
3. Confirm action. The system will return the standard MIUI screensaver.

If the reset didn’t work, try a more radical method:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find the Themes app (themes).
3. Click Warehouse → Clear the cache and Clear the data.
4. Restart your smartphone. Once you turn it on, the wallpaper will go back to standard.

⚠️ Attention: Cleaning the Topic app data will not only reset the wallpaper, but also all the applied themes (icons, fonts, notification styles). If you used a custom theme, it will have to be reinstalled.

1. Activate Developer Mode (7 times click on the MIUI version in Settings → About Phone).

2. Return to Settings → Additional → For developers.

3. Find the window animation option and set the value No animation or 0.5x.-->

Problem Solving: What to do if you can not change the screensaver

Sometimes users find that the Apply button is inactive, the wallpaper is not saved or the system gives an error.

Problem 1: The “Apply” button is not pressed

Possible causes and solutions:

• 🔒 Parental Control Limitations: If the phone is enabled with Safe Mode or Parental Control, some settings are blocked. → Special facilities → Parental control.
• 📱 Lack of memory: If the built-in storage is 90 full%+, Free up space (delete unnecessary files or transfer them to a memory card).
• 🔄 Gluck MIUI: Restart your smartphone or update your firmware to the latest version.

Problem 2: Wallpaper is reset after rebooting

This is a common problem on devices with MIUI 12.5 and MIUI 13.

• 📁 Check the file path: If you use a photo from a memory card, move it to internal memory (folder) DCIM or Pictures).
• 🛠️ Clear the cache of the Topics app (as described in the previous section).
• 📱 Disable Battery Optimization for the Topics app: Go to Settings → Annexes → Application management → Select the Battery. → No restrictions.

Problem 3: You can't install wallpaper from the gallery

If the item is not in the gallery menu:

• 🔧 Update the Gallery app through Play Market.
• 📲 Use another photo viewing app (e.g. Google Photos or Simple Gallery).
• 🔄 Reset Gallery settings: Settings → Annexes → gallery → Warehouse → Clear the data

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If none of these things worked, try resetting the lock screen to factory settings. Go to Settings → System → Reset → Reset the lock screen settings. This won't delete your data, but it will return all display settings to standard.

FAQ: Frequent questions about changing the screensaver on Xiaomi