How to Remove the Navigation Panel on Xiaomi: A Complete Guide with Gestures and ADB

Why Users Want to Hide Navigation Panel – and When It’s Justified

The navigation bar at the bottom of Xiaomi’s screen is a classic MIUI feature that many users consider archaism. With the introduction of gesture controls in Android 9+ and MIUI 10+, the traditional Back, Home and Recent buttons have lost relevance for most tasks, but the manufacturer defaults to leaving them on many models, from the budget Redmi Note to the flagship Xiaomi 13/14.

The main reasons why owners want to remove the navigation bar on Xiaomi:

• 📱 Saving screen space – especially important for devices with a small diagonal (for example, Redmi). 9A or POCO M3), where every pixel counts.
• 🎮 Immersive mode for games – hiding the panel allows you to avoid accidental clicks during gameplay (important for Genshin Impact, PUBG Mobile and others.).
• ⚡ Quick gestures – swipes on the edges of the screen often work more intuitively than classic buttons.
• 🔄 Incompatibility with custom launchers – some shells (for example, Nova Launcher) conflict with the system panel.

But there is a downside: without the navigation bar, some features become less accessible. For example, on models with a hardware home button (such as the Xiaomi Mi 8), disabling the software bar can lead to loss of quick access to Google Assistant through a long press. It is also important to note that on devices with MIUI for Android Go (such as Redmi) A1) Some of the methods may not work.

Method 1: Standard disabling via MIUI settings (for most models)

The easiest method is to use built-in MIUI options. It works on all devices with shell versions 10 to 15 (including POCO and Black Shark), but may not be available on some regional firmware (for example, for India or China).

Step instructions:

1. Open the Settings → Display.
2. Select Full-screen mode (on some models – Navigation style).
3. Slip on the option of Gesture navigation or Full-screen gestures.
4. Select the swipe option up from the bottom edge (or similar).
5. Confirm the changes and restart the device (recommended, but not required).

On some models (e.g. Xiaomi) 12T or Redmi K50) And when you activate the gestures, you have a thin strip at the bottom of the screen, and it's not a bug, it's a swipe tip, and you have to use it to remove it completely. ADB-commands (see Method 3).

Method 2: Hiding the panel through "For developers" (no root)

If standard settings don’t offer gesture control, you can try activating hidden options through the developer menu, which works on 80% of Xiaomi models, including outdated ones (Mi A2, Redmi 5 Plus) and new ones (POCO F5).

Algorithm of action:

• 🔧 Activate Developer Mode: Go to Settings → About the phone and 7 times tap on the version MIUI.
• 📱 Go back to the main settings menu and open a new section for developers.
• 🔍 Find the option Full screen mode or debugging by USB (if not first).
• 🎛️ Enable Hide Navigation Panel or Forced Full Screen Mode.

⚠️ Note: On some firmware (for example, MIUI EU) If the gestures do not respond to swipes after activation, return the settings to their original state and use Method 3.

Method 3: Completely remove the panel via ADB (for power users)

If previous methods have failed, the most radical (and effective) way is to use Android Debug Bridge (ADB), which allows you to completely deactivate the Android-level navigation system bar, including gesture prompts, and is suitable for all Xiaomi models, including those where the manufacturer has blocked standard options.

What you need:

• 🖥️ Computer with Windows/macOS/Linux
• 📋 Installed drivers Xiaomi and ADB Tools
• 🔌 USB-cable (preferably original)
• ⚙️ Included debugging by USB phone-on

Step-by-step:

1. Connect the phone to the PC and confirm the debugging permission.
2. Open the command line and type in: adb shell settings put global policy_control immersive.full=*
3. To return the standard panel, use: adb shell settings put global policy_control null
4. Reset the device.

⚠️ Note: On some firmware (especially custom ones), this command may result in loss of gesture functionality. → System system → Resetting settings (without deleting data).

💡

Before using ADB, create a restore point in TWRP (if installed) to help return the system to a state of operation if errors occur.

Method 4: Using third-party applications (without root)

If you don't want to mess with ADB, you can use Google Play's dedicated utilities, which don't require super-user rights, but have limitations: for example, the navigation bar will only be hidden in certain applications or when performing specific actions.

Top.-3 panel-hide:

• 📱 Nacho Notch – hides the panel and the notch in the screen, works on the screen MIUI 12-14. Disadvantage: Shows the advert.
• 🎮 Game Tools (from Xiaomi) - built-in utility for gamers, hides the panel in games. Activated through Settings → Special facilities → Game Turbo.
• 🔧 Full Screen Immersive Mode – Supports automatic concealment when running selected applications.

Importantly, most of these applications don't work in the background on MIUI due to aggressive battery optimization. To make them work properly, add them to the exceptions:

1. Open Settings → Battery and Performance.
2. Select Battery Consumption Management for applications.
3. Find your app to hide the panel and set the No Limits mode.

💡

The app side is a temporary solution, and after the MIUI update, they may stop working, as Xiaomi regularly tightens security policies.

Method 5: Edit build.prop (for hardwired devices only)

This method is suitable for users with an unlocked bootloader and TWRP installed. It allows you to permanently remove the navigation bar by editing the system file build.prop. Dangerous for beginners - incorrect changes can lead to bootloop.

Instructions:

1. Back up your current build.prop via TWRP or Root Explorer.
2. Open the file in a text editor (e.g. QuickEdit).
3. Add the line at the end: qemu.hw.mainkeys=1
4. Save the changes, set the rights 644 and restart the device.

⚠️ Note: On some models (POCO F1, Mi 9) this setting may conflict with gesture control. If the screen becomes unstable after editing (twitches when swipes), delete the added line and use Method 3 (ADB).

Frequent problems and their solutions

Even after successfully hiding the navigation bar, Xiaomi users are faced with typical bugs, and here are the most common ways to fix them:

If none of the methods worked, check:

• 📱 Version MIUI — on some regional firmware (for example, MIUI China Stable options hidden.
• 🔄 System updates – new versions may have navigation bugs.
• 🛠️ Having root – some models (Black Shark) require superuser rights for profound changes.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions