How to completely remove ads on the phone Xiaomi Redmi 8: a step-by-step guide

Xiaomi Redmi 8 owners often face intrusive ads that appear in system applications, on the lock screen and even in the settings menu. This is not a coincidence — this is how MIUI’s business model works, where ad impressions compensate for the low cost of smartphones. However, constant banners, pop-ups and recommendations are not only annoying, but also slowing down the device, consuming traffic and battery power.

Fortunately, there are several ways to disable ads on Redmi 8, from standard settings to hidden firmware features. In this article, we will look at all the current methods of 2026, including those that work even after system updates. Importantly, some methods require administrator rights or change system files, so we recommend backing up data before you start.

If you're ready to get rid of advertising once and for all, we're going to go through each method in detail, start with the simplest and safest options, and then move on to advanced techniques for power users.

1. disable personalized advertising in MIUI settings

The fastest and safest way to reduce ad impressions is to disable ad personalization in your Xiaomi account settings, which won’t remove ads completely, but will significantly reduce the number of ads you see, especially in system applications like Weather, Music or Themes.

Instructions:

• 📱 Open the Settings. → Xiaomi Account (or Mi Account).
• 🔍 Go to Privacy or Data Management (name depends on version) MIUI).
• 🚫 Find Personalized Recommendations (or Advertising) and turn off the slider.
• 🔄 Reboot your phone to make the changes take effect.

This method works on all versions of Redmi 8, including models with global (Global) and Chinese (China) firmware, but it does not remove in-app ads from third-party developers (such as Mi Browser or Mi Video).

2. Blocking advertising through system application settings

Many built-in MIUI apps have their own ad settings that you can manually disable, such as in Weather, Music or Themes, there are hidden options to manage the banners you show. Let's look at how to do this for key services.

List of applications with advertising settings:

• 🌦️ Weather: Settings → About the programme → Deactivate "Show recommendations".
• 🎵 Music: Settings → Additionally. → Recommendations → Turn off all sliders.
• 🎨 Topics: Profile → Settings → Advertising → Delete "Personalized Advertisements".
• 📱 Browser (Mi Browser): Settings → Confidentiality → Delete "Recommended Content".

Once these options are disabled, ads in these apps should disappear, but some banners may remain if they are downloaded through third-party services (such as Google AdMob), in which case installing an ad blocker (which we will discuss later) will help.

Check the Weather settings | Turn off the Music recommendations | Remove personalization in Themes | Clear the browser cache-->

3.Using ADB to Deeply Disable Advertising

If standard settings don’t work, you can use the Android debugging bridge (ADB), a tool for advanced users, which allows you to completely disable system ads, including those that appear on the lock screen or in the notification menu.

The work will require:

• 🖥️ Computer with installed Xiaomi drivers and tool ADB.
• 🔌 USB-cable for the Redmi 8 connection.
• 🔧 Included Debugging by USB (You can find it in the settings. → The phone. → Version. MIUI — Press 7 times, then return to the Additional Settings → For developers).

Step-by-step:

1. Connect the phone to the PC and confirm the debugging permission.
2. Open the command prompt (or Terminal on Mac/Linux) and type:

adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.miui.systemAdSolution

1. To disable advertising in Mi Browser, do:

adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.android.browser

1. Reboot the phone.

These commands block the system modules responsible for displaying ads, and if after the reboot, some functions (such as weather widgets) are affected, you can return the settings by the command:

adb shell pm enable com.miui.systemAdSolution

4. Installation of ad blocker (Blokada, AdGuard)

One of the most effective ways to combat advertising is to install specialized blocking apps that work at the DNS or VPN level, intercepting and filtering advertising requests. Redmi 8 will work for:

• 🛡️ Blokada – blocks ads without root rights, works through VPN.
• 🔒 AdGuard – supports domain filtering and has flexible settings.
• 🌐 DNS66 — Open source software for blocking advertising at the level DNS.

How to install and configure Blokada:

1. Download APK from the official website (not from Google Play!).
2. Allow installation from unknown sources in Settings → Applications → Special Access → Install unknown applications.
3. Launch Blokada and activate protection (click on the shield icon).
4. In the settings, select the lock modes: All Ad Domains + Tracking.

The advantage of this method is that it blocks ads across all applications, including games and social networks, but some banners on MIUI system services may remain because they are integrated at the firmware level.

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If after installing the blocker, some sites (for example, banking sites) stopped working, add them to the whitelist in the application settings.

5.Resetting advertising ID and cleaning the cache

MIUI ads are often linked to your device’s Advertising ID, and resetting them can temporarily reduce your impressions, especially if you’ve previously agreed to personalized ads.

Instructions:

1. Go to Settings → Google → Advertising (or Settings → Apps → Google Play Services → Advertising).
2. Click Reset Advertising ID and confirm the action.
3. Return to the basic settings and clear the app cache: Mi Browser Mi Video Themes Google Play Services

This method is especially useful if the ads started to appear after updating the firmware or installing new applications, but the effect can be temporary – after a few days, the ad impressions can resume.

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Resetting your ad ID doesn’t remove ads completely, but resets your preferences for targeted ads. For a lasting result, combine this method with others (such as ADB or blockers).

6. Removal of system applications (requires root rights)

If you're willing to take drastic measures, you can remove the system apps responsible for displaying ads, a method that requires root rights and can cause the phone to run unstable, so it's only suitable for power users.

List of apps that can be removed (via Root Explorer or Titanium Backup):

⚠️ Note: Removing system applications may disrupt some functions MIUI, For example, weather widgets or themes.Be sure to back up through the TWRP or Mi PC Suite.

If after removal the phone began to slow down or give errors, restore the deleted packets from the backup or reflash the device.

7. Transition to custom firmware (for advanced)

The most drastic way to get rid of advertising is to install custom firmware, such as LineageOS, Pixel Experience or HavocOS. These builds are devoid of built-in MIUI advertising modules and offer pure Android without unnecessary services.

Advantages of custom firmware:

• 🚀 No system advertising and unnecessary applications.
• 🔄 Regular security updates.
• 🎛️ Flexible interface settings.

Disadvantages:

• ⚠️ Loss of warranty (if the phone is under warranty).
• 🔧 Requires unlocking the bootloader and installation TWRP.
• 📱 Possible bugs with camera or sensors (depending on firmware).

If you decide to do this, follow the instructions for your model on the XDA Developers forum. For Redmi 8, Android 10/11-based firmware will work.

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Before installing custom firmware, check for compatibility with the codename of your Redmi 8 (such as olivelite for the global version).

FAQ: Frequent questions about removing ads on Redmi 8