Xiaomi’s modern smartphones, with their MIUI shells and the new HyperOS, offer tremendous customization capabilities, allowing you to turn a standard desktop into a unique tool for managing your gadget. Many users often wonder how to quickly access the right functions, contacts or web pages without unnecessary clicks on the menu. Creating personalized shortcuts is a basic skill that significantly speeds up the device and makes navigation more intuitive.
In this article, we will take a look at all the ways to create shortcuts on Xiaomi smartphones, from standard methods to hidden system functions. You will learn to place links on the desktop to specific sections of settings, individual contacts or even entire websites, which is especially true for those who use the phone not only for entertainment but also for work. We will look at the nuances of the launcher and possible problems that you may encounter during the setup process.
Basic principles of working with the MIUI desktop
Before you start building complex designs, you need to understand how the Xiaomi shell icon system works. The desktop here is a grid where each element occupies a specific cell and the interaction with objects is built on long pressing. This fundamental action opens up a context menu that allows you to edit, delete or move elements of the interface. Without understanding this logic, further configuration can seem confusing.
It's important to note that depending on the firmware version, the menu's appearance may vary slightly, but the Long Press principle remains the same across all versions of Android. It's this action that puts the system into editing mode, allowing you to manipulate the screen space. If you just short-click on the icon, the app will launch, so it's the finger you need to hold on the screen to create shortcuts.
MIUI also has its own specialities in organizing folders and widgets that are closely related to application shortcuts, such as dragging and dropping one icon to another creates a folder, which is also a form of shortcut organization, and understanding these basic mechanics will allow you to not just copy instructions, but flexibly manage your workspace, creating a really user-friendly structure.
- 📱 Long tap on the free screen space causes a menu of widgets and settings.
- 📁 Drag and drop icons to another creates a folder for grouping shortcuts.
- ⚙️ The context menu of the application is available through long-term retention of the icon.
- 🔄 Changing the size of shortcuts is not possible in all launchers by default.
⚠️ Note: When removing the application shortcut from the desktop in MIUI There are often two options: "Delete" (just remove the icon) and "Delete the application" (complete uninstallation.
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The main principle of managing the Xiaomi interface is a long press, which puts the system in the editing mode of elements.
How to create an application shortcut or its functions
The most common scenario is to bring to the home screen not just an app, but a specific feature, such as “Flashlight”, “Pay” or “Scan QR.” In the Xiaomi ecosystem, this is implemented quite conveniently through the “About App” menu. To create such a shortcut, find the desired application in the general list or on the desktop and pinch its icon with your finger.
In the pop-up, select About app (or the "i" icon in the circle). In the settings menu that opens, look for the Notifications section or the action list, which is often displayed as text links under the program name. If the system supports shortcuts for specific actions, you will see the Add to the desktop button next to the desired function.
For some system applications, such as Calendar, Camera or Recorder, feature shortcuts can be accessed immediately with a long click on the icon without going into the settings. Just hold your finger on the icon, and if the developer has provided this option, you will see a list of actions, any of which can be dragged to the free screen space by creating a separate shortcut.
☑️ Verification of the possibility of creating a label
Note that not all third-party applications support this feature at the system level. If there is no add-on to the desktop in the action menu, then the developer of the program has not laid this opportunity, and you will have to use third-party solutions or widgets.
Creating website shortcuts through the browser
Often, you need to have quick access to your favorite site, forum or news portal, bypassing the address in the browser bar. On Xiaomi smartphones, this can be done through the built-in Mi Browser browser or the popular Google Chrome. The process of creating a web shortcut is almost identical in most modern browsers based on the Chromium engine.
Open your browser and go to the page you want to save. Click on the browser menu (usually three dots in the corner of the screen or the settings icon). In the drop-down list, find Add to the home screen or Create a shortcut. The system will prompt you to change the shortcut name, which will appear under the icon, after which a new item will appear on the desktop.
This method is especially useful for web applications that don’t require installation through Google Play, but you need it all the time, for example, by creating a shortcut for a web version of a messenger or a specific service that doesn’t have a native app in the store.
| browser | Location of the menu | Title of paragraph | Features |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Chrome | Three dots (right) | Add to the screen | Automatically pulls up the site icon |
| Mi Browser | Menu (bottom or top) | Add to the desktop | Can require proof of rights |
| Firefox | Three dots (right) | Add it to the screen. | Allows you to select “Tag” or “Application” |
| Opera | Menu (bottom) | Add to the screen | Often offers a quick link widget |
What if the “Add to the Home Screen” item is not active?
Use of widgets as alternatives to labels
Widgets occupy a special place in the MIUI shell and are often a more functional replacement for static shortcuts. A widget is a dynamic element that can display information in real time, such as the weather, currency rate or recent calls, and still serve as an application launch button.
To add a widget, swipe right across your desktop to get to the "-1" screen (Google Discover or Mi Vision), or just pinch the empty space on your desktop and select Widgets. In the menu that opens, you'll find a huge list of available items for all installed applications. Just drag the widget to the screen and adjust its size.
Some widgets in Xiaomi are interactive, so you can swipe left or right without opening the app itself, and this allows you to, for example, flip through music tracks or switch tasks in the scheduler right from the desktop, making the interface more lively and informative than static icons.
- 🌡 Weather and watch widgets are the most popular items on the desktop.
- 📞 The Favorites widget allows you to call contacts in one click.
- 🎵 Music widgets give player control without logging into the application.
- 📅 Calendar shows schedule for the week directly on the screen.
⚠️ Attention: A large number of active widgets, especially those that are updated over the Internet (weather, news), can significantly increase battery consumption.
Folder settings and shortcut grouping
As the number of apps installed grows, the desktop becomes a mess of colorful icons, HyperOS and MIUI have a convenient folder system to keep order, and it's easy to create a folder: just drag and drop one app shortcut to another, and the system automatically creates a container that puts both programs in.
Click on the folder you created to open it, and you can rename it by giving it a clear name, like "Social Network," "Games," or "Work," and you can put up to a few dozen shortcuts inside the folder, organizing them into a grid, which allows you to free up space on the main screens, leaving only the essentials.
Newer versions of the shell have a folder zoom function, so if you click on the folder and select the appropriate icon (usually looks like arrows in the corners or a menu item), the folder will turn around the entire screen or occupy a large area, allowing you to interact with the applications inside comfortably without opening them completely, which turns the folder into a mini launcher.
Grouping by color or purpose is not just a matter of aesthetics, it's also a way to speed up the search for the right program. The brain responds more quickly to visual patterns, so placing icons of similar colors in a single folder can subjectively speed up the work with a smartphone.
Advanced methods: third-party launchers and applications
If standard features aren’t enough, third-party solutions from Google Play come to the rescue. Launcher apps like Nova Launcher, Microsoft Launcher or Smart Launcher completely replace Xiaomi’s standard interface, offering limitless shortcut customization options.
Third-party launchers can create shortcuts that change their appearance depending on the time of day, hide unused applications or create complex launch scenarios, and there are special shortcut design applications that allow you to assign a whole chain of actions to an icon.
These programs often require special permissions, including the right to draw over other windows and control the desktop, and once the launcher is installed, the system will prompt them to choose the main one — confirm this choice to see the changes.
Settings → Applications → Application Management → Desktop by Default → DesktopSelect the installed launcher from the list. Now you can customize the grid, animations and shortcut behavior in ways that are not possible with standard MIUI tools.
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Use Empty Shortcuts applications to assign complex macros to them through automation applications such as Tasker.
Solution: Labels are not created or disappear
Xiaomi users sometimes face a situation where created shortcuts do not appear on the desktop or spontaneously disappear after a reboot, most often due to aggressive memory optimization or lack of necessary permissions from system components.
The first thing to check is the permission to create shortcuts. Go to your phone settings, look for the Apps → All Apps. Find the browser or app you use to create a shortcut (like Chrome or Mi Browser) in the list. Go to Other permissions and make sure that Desktop Shortcuts are allowed (green tick).
If there is a resolution but the problem persists, try clearing the launcher cache. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps → Find System Launcher (or MIUI Home) → Memory → Clear the cache. This won’t delete your data, but will reset possible interface display errors.
⚠️ Note: If you use a theme downloaded from a theme store, it may conflict with the creation of new shortcuts. Try switching to a standard theme "Classic" or "No Limits" to see if the problem will go away.
In rare cases, the problem may lie in a phone's overcrowded memory. If there is critically little space available, the system may block the creation of new interface elements. Free up at least 500 MB of space and try again.