How to permanently remove ads from Xiaomi Explorer: disable banners and recommendations in MIUI

Ads in standard Xiaomi Explorer are one of the most annoying features of MIUI firmware. Game banners, Mi Store promotions and app recommendations pop up right among your files, slow down the manager and spoil the user experience. Worst of all, even after manually closing, the ad returns after a few days - the system resets.

In this article, we will discuss 5 proven ways to remove ads from Explorer on Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphones (including the 2020-2026 models on MIUI 12-14). Among them are official methods through settings, workarounds using ADB, and radical solutions for advanced users. Importantly, some methods require disabling personalization or resetting advertising ID, which can affect the operation of other Xiaomi services.

Before you start, check your firmware version in Settings → About Phone → MIUI version. This depends on the availability of certain features. Also note that after major updates to MIUI, advertising may return – you will have to repeat the procedure.

1. disable personalized advertising in MIUI settings

The easiest and safest way to do this is to deactivate personalized recommendations in your system settings, which will not remove ads completely, but will reduce the amount of ads significantly.The method works on all Xiaomi devices with MIUI 12 and later, including the Redmi Note 12 Pro+, POCO F5 and Xiaomi 13T.

Instructions:

1. Open Settings → Google → Advertising (or Settings → Additional → Privacy → Advertising on some models).
2. Click Disable Personalized Ads and confirm the selection.
3. Go back to the basic settings and go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
4. Find the Explorer (or File Manager), open its settings and reset the cache.

This method reduces banners by 60 to 70 percent, but does not eliminate them completely, such as Mi Cloud ads or Xiaomi promotions, which may remain, and more radical measures will be needed to remove them completely.

⚠️ Note: On some firmware (for example, MIUI 14 for global version) the Advertising item may be hidden, in which case, use the settings search (the magnifier icon in the upper right corner) and enter the "advertising" request».

2. Resetting Advertising ID via Google Settings

Advertising ID is a unique code used for targeted advertising, which causes MIUI to temporarily “forget” your preferences, resulting in a decrease in banner counts, and works on all Google Mobile Services (GMS) devices, including Redmi 10, POCO M4 Pro and Xiaomi 12 Lite.

How to Reset Advertising ID:

• 📱 Open the Settings. → Google → Advertising.
• 🔄 Click Reset Advertising ID and confirm the action.
• 🔒 Enable the option to Remove advertising ID When settings are reset (if available).
• 📲 Reboot your phone and check Explorer – banners should disappear for 1-2 weeks.

This method does not have a permanent effect: in 10 to 14 days, the ad can return. For long-term results, combine it with disabling personalization (section 1) or use it. ADB-teams (section 4).

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If the banners returned after a few days after resetting your ad ID, try disabling sync with Mi Account in your account settings. This can further reduce the number of impressions.

3. Removal of advertising through the hidden settings of the Explorer

V MIUI There are hidden parameters that allow you to disable ads at the level of the Explorer itself. This method does not require root rights, but it does not work on all versions of the firmware. MIUI 13.0.4 (Redmi Note 11) and MIUI 14.0.2 (Xiaomi 12 Pro).

Step-by-step:

1. Open the Explorer and tap three points in the upper right corner.
2. Select Settings → About the programme.
3. Click 5-7 times in a row on the line with the Explorer version (for example, “Version 1.22.3”) until the message “You became a developer” appears.
4. Return to the basic settings of the Explorer - there will be a new item Additional settings.
5. Open it and turn off the options: 📢 Show recommendations 🎯 Personalized content 🔄 Auto-update of recommendations

Once you have changed it, restart Explorer. If the banners are still there, try clearing the application data to Settings → Applications → Explorer → Storage → Clear the data. On some firmware (e.g. MIUI 14 for POCO F5), this method blocks not only ads, but also useful clues like quick access to the cloud.

4.Using ADB to Deeply Disable Advertising

If previous methods didn’t work, you can use Android Debug Bridge (ADB), a low-level system management tool that doesn’t require root rights, but requires connecting your phone to your computer. Suitable for all Xiaomi devices on MIUI 12-14, including the Redmi K50, POCO F4 GT and Xiaomi 13 Ultra.

What you need:

• 🖥️ Computer with Windows/macOS/Linux
• 📱 USB-cable (preferably original)
• 🔧 Utility. ADB Tools (download from Google website)
• 🔒 Included debugging by USB (Settings → The phone. → Version. MIUI → 7 times tap; then Settings → Additionally. → For developers → Debugging by USB)

Commands to disable ads:

adb shell pm hide com.miui.systemAdSolution


adb shell pm hide com.miui.analytics




adb shell pm hide com.xiaomi.midrop

After you've done the commands, restart your phone. The ads in Explorer should disappear forever, but there are nuances:

• ⚠️ On some firmware (MIUI 14 for Redmi Note 12 teams may fail due to Xiaomi lock.
• ⚠️ Disabling com.xiaomi.midrop will block the Mi Drop function (fast file transfer between Xiaomi devices).
• ⚠️ After updating MIUI You have to repeat the procedure.

⚠️ Note: Do not use the commands adb shell pm uninstall instead of hide – this can cause system applications to fail and require a complete reset of the phone. hide only hides applications from the system, without removing them.

5. Installation of an alternative file manager

If fighting ads in standard Explorer seems too difficult, you can simply replace it with a third-party app.It is a radical but effective solution - no banners, more features and better performance.

• 📁 Solid Explorer is a paid, 14-day trial. Supports cloud storage, FTP and encryption.
• 🔍 FX File Explorer is free, with built-in archiver and root support.
• 🌐 MiXplorer is the Xiaomi Explorer, but without advertising. APK.
• 📱 Files by Google – simple and easy Manager from Google, without banners.

How to make an alternative file manager the default application:

1. Install the selected file manager from Google Play.
2. Open any application that requests access to files (such as a gallery).
3. When you see a “Open with Help” request, select your new manager and mark Always.
4. Go to Settings → Applications → By default and assign it to the primary Explorer.

The downside to this method is the loss of some MIUI features, such as fast file sending via Mi Share or integration with Mi Cloud, but for most users this is not critical.

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Alternative file managers not only remove ads, but also often run faster than standard Xiaomi Explorer, especially on budget models like the Redmi 10A or POCO M3.

6 Radical methods: root and custom firmware

If you're willing to go to extreme lengths, you can get root rights or install custom firmware without advertising, and these are 100 percent effective, but they have some serious drawbacks:

• ⚠️ Loss of warranty (if the phone is under warranty).
• ⚠️ Risk of “bricking” (turning the phone into a “brick”) when making mistakes.
• ⚠️ Problems with banking applications (many refuse to work on rooted devices).

The most popular options are:

• 🔧 Magisk + module MIUI Ads – Blocks system-level advertising without removing applications.
• 📱 Custom firmware like LineageOS, Pixel Experience or ArrowOS – completely replace MIUI on pure Android.
• 🛠️ Xiaomi.eu – modified version MIUI No advertising or Chinese services (suitable for most models).

Instructions for installing Xiaomi.eu:

1. Unlock the bootloader through the official Xiaomi tool (requires a Mi Account and wait 7-15 days).
2. Download the firmware Xiaomi.eu for your model from the forum.
3. Install it through TWRP (Castom Recovery).
4. Do a data reset (Wipe Dalvik/Cache, Data, System).

⚠️ Note: On models with a MediaTek processor (e.g. Redmi) 10C or POCO M5) Unlocking the bootloader can lead to loss IMEI and a broken mobile network. Before the procedure, back up the partition. NVRAM.

FAQ: Frequent questions about advertising in Xiaomi Explorer