How to remove ads on Xiaomi smartphone: the complete guide

Modern smartphones from Chinese giant Xiaomi offer impressive value for money, but the cost of affordable prices often comes at a cost of intrusive marketing: device owners face banner ads in system applications, pop-ups after installing programs, and even standard utilities like “Conductor” or “Music” that are not just annoying, but consume traffic, and can slow down the interface.

Fortunately, the company’s aggressive policies can be curbed without having superuser rights or programming knowledge. In this article, we’ll take a look at all the methods available, from simple switches in settings to more advanced ways to lock through DNS. You’ll learn to clean the interface of unnecessary visual noise and make using MIUI or the new HyperOS truly comfortable.

It is important to understand that the MIUI (or MSA) advertising system is deeply integrated into the system processes. Therefore, to achieve maximum effect, it is recommended to perform all the steps described below sequentially. Skipping a step can leave loopholes for displaying banners in individual sections of the menu.

Disabling the MSA system advertising module

The main source of intrusive offers in the system is the MSA (MIUI System Ads) service, which is responsible for collecting data about your preferences and showing the corresponding banners, the first and most important step is to turn it off through standard security settings.

First, you need to find the appropriate permission in the phone menu. Go to Settings → Passwords and Security → Access to personal data. In the application list that opens, find msa and put the slider in an inactive position. The system will warn you that some features may stop working correctly, and will suggest waiting 10 seconds before confirming.

⚠️ Warning: If you can't turn off the module the first time and you have an error, don't despair. Try turning off the Internet (Wi-Fi and mobile data) and repeat the procedure. Often the module can't check the license status without the network and allows you to disconnect yourself.

After successfully disabling msa, it is also recommended to limit the background activity of this process so that it is guaranteed not to start again after the reboot. Go to Settings → Apps → All applications, find msa in the list and select “Saving Charge”. Set the value “No restrictions” only if you plan to turn on the ad again, otherwise you should choose “Limit background activity”.

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Disabling MSA is a fundamental step, blocking up to 80% of all system advertising, but it requires repeating the procedure 2-3 times due to the protective mechanisms of the shell.

Advertising IDs and Recommendations

Even after the core module is disabled, individual services remain in the system, which continue to collect data for targeted advertising, this is an advertising ID that is assigned to your device and personalized recommendations in system applications.

To reset your data and prevent it from being used, go to Settings → Passwords & Security → Privacy → Advertising Services. You need to activate the “Disable Ad Personalization” switch, which will not remove the ads completely, but will make them less relevant and intrusive, breaking the link between your actions and the content you show.

Next, you should go through the built-in applications, which are often sinned by the presence of Yandex news feed or other aggregators, in particular, this applies to the application “Security”, “Conductor” and “Downloads”.

• 📱 Security App: Open the app, click on the gear in the top right corner, and find "Get recommendations." Turn it off.
• 📂 Explorer: Go to the menu (three bars), select Settings» → «About the app (or just “Settings” inside the menu) and disable “Get recommendations».
• 📥 Downloads: In the Downloads app, click three dots in the corner, select Settings and remove the tick from Get Recommendations».

Keep in mind that the interface may vary slightly depending on the shell version. In HyperOS, some items may be renamed, but the logic remains the same: look for the words “Recommendations”, “Tape” or “News” in the settings of each system application.

Cleaning the desktop and tool folder

One of the most annoying features of Xiaomi smartphones is the Tools folder on the desktop, which often contains shortcuts of unnecessary apps and advertising widgets. In addition, a widget tape can be activated on the home screen, which is also saturated with advertising content.

To start, we'll take the widget tape to the left of the main screen, swipe right on the desktop (or two finger pinches) to go into edit mode. Click on Settings (usually the gear at the bottom) and turn off the option of Widget Ribbon or Google Discover if you don't need it, which will speed up the desktop opening and remove unnecessary news.

Now, let's go to the Tools folder, and often people don't know that its content can be controlled. Go inside the folder, click on the folder name or edit button, and you can remove the shortcuts to unnecessary apps like Mi Video, Mi Music, or third-party games that were preinstalled.

⚠️ Note: Do not remove system shortcuts unless you are sure of their purpose (such as “Themes” or “Services”), as this may disrupt some shell features. Only remove third-party Google apps and services that you do not use.

Also worth checking the settings of the desktop itself. Go to Settings → Desktop. You can turn off the Wallpaper Carousel, which often loads advertising images onto the lock screen. Choose a static image or slideshow from your gallery to avoid unexpected banners when you turn on the screen.

Blocking Advertising through Private DNS

The most effective method, which works at the level of the entire Android operating system, is the use of a private DNS. This method does not require the installation of third-party applications and allows you to filter traffic by blocking requests to known ad servers.

To activate this function, go to Settings → Connection and sharing → Private DNS-server. The default is "Auto"; you have to select "Host Name of the provider." DNS» (Or manually, and you type in the address of a special server, and one of the most popular and reliable services is AdGuard. DNS.

dns.adguard.com

Enter this command in the input box and save the settings. After that, all Internet traffic on your smartphone will pass through AdGuard filters, which will automatically screen out ads in browsers and many applications. This can also help speed up page loading, since advertising scripts simply will not load.

It’s worth noting that using a third-party DNS can sometimes cause some specific applications or games to run in an unstable way that rely on specific network paths, but 95% of the time, this method works perfectly and is the only way to remove ads inside third-party apps without root rights.

Managing Notifications from System Applications

Even after disabling the main sources of advertising, you can continue to receive pop-up notifications from system applications offering to install games or use services, often from the Themes, Mi Browser or Scanner apps.

To get rid of them forever, you need to customize notifications for each application individually. Press the app icon that spams notifications, and select About → Notifications. You can completely disable notifications or leave only critical ones by disabling Marketing, Recommendations or News categories.

Pay special attention to GetApps, which is the app that most often sends offers for discounts and new games, and its notification settings recommend turning off everything except, perhaps, updates to already installed programs if you use this store.

Regularly checking the list of installed applications also helps to keep the system clean.Remove those programs that you have stopped using, as they may contain advertising modules that activate in the background.

Alternative methods and installation of a clean launcher

If standard methods don’t seem effective enough or you want to drastically change the look of your smartphone, you might want to consider installing a third-party launcher.The launcher is an application that replaces the standard desktop, app menus and often widgets.

Popular launchers like Nova Launcher, Microsoft Launcher or Smart Launcher are completely devoid of built-in advertising and provide much more customization options. Once you install such a launcher and assign it to the main one, you will forget about the Tools folder and intrusive news feeds.

Another advanced method is to use blocker apps like Blokada or AdGuard (full version). VPN-Tunneling on the device and filtering traffic even more carefully than DNS-However, this may slightly increase battery consumption.

⚠️ Note: When installing third-party launchers or blockers from unknown sources, make sure you download them from official developer sites or from a trusted Google Play store to avoid viruses.

By combining different approaches, you can achieve a virtually sterile environment on your smartphone: Start by turning off the MSA, then set up the DNS, and then replace the launcher if you don't like the standard interface, a holistic approach that ensures no advertising in 2026 and beyond.

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Periodically check the “Licenses” section in your Mi Account settings. Sometimes there are new data consent points that need to be manually disabled after major system updates.