How to remove unnecessary desktops on Xiaomi Android smartphones: all working methods

Desktops on Xiaomi’s MIUI-enclosed smartphones are a handy tool for organizing applications, but sometimes they get too many. Extra screens appear after updates, installing new programs or random gestures. Unlike other manufacturers, where removing desktops is intuitive, this process is often questionable at MIUI, especially when users have recently switched from iOS or “pure” Android.

In this article, we will discuss all the current ways to remove unnecessary desktops on Xiaomi Redmi, POCO, Mi and other devices running MIUI 12-14. You will learn how to remove empty screens, return the standard number of tables after a crash, and what to do if the option to remove is inactive.

Why Xiaomi has extra desktops

In MIUI, desktops can be duplicated or created automatically for several reasons:

• 📱 Install new apps. The system sometimes adds a new screen if the current ones don't have enough room for icons.
• 🔄 Update MIUI. After major updates (for example, with the MIUI 13 on MIUI 14) desktop settings may be reset.
• 👆 Control gestures. Random finger-mixing on the home screen MIUI can create a new table (the function "Dimension to add a screen»).
• 📦 Data portability: When you restore from a backup or move from another smartphone, sometimes duplicate screens are used.
• 🤖 Launcher errors: In rare cases, shell bugs lead to ghostly tables that are not removed in standard ways.

For example, users of the Redmi Note 12 and POCO X5 Pro often encounter a problem after upgrading to MIUI 14, when the system automatically adds 2-3 empty screens. In older versions (MIUI 11-12), this function worked differently, and many are still looking for outdated instructions that are no longer relevant.

⚠️ Note: If extra desktops appeared after installing a third-party launcher (for example, Nova Launcher or Apex Launcher), you need to delete them through the settings of this launcher, not system settings. MIUI.

Method 1: Remove the desktop through MIUI settings (standard method)

This is the easiest and safest way to work on all Xiaomi smartphones with a MIUI 12-14 shell. Instructions are suitable for Redmi 10/11/12, POCO F4/X5, Mi 11/12 and others:

1. Unlock your smartphone and go to the main screen (any desktop).
2. Make a chip with two fingers (put them together) or pinch an empty space on the screen before the settings menu appears.
3. At the bottom of the screen, you'll see a panel with thumbnails of all desktops. Click on the basket icon (🗑️) over the screen you want to remove.
4. Confirm the action by clicking Delete in the window that appears.

If the basket icon is inactive (grey), it means that at least one icon or widget is left on the screen, in which case, first transfer all the elements to another table, and then try again.

Make sure there are no icons or widgets on the screen.|

Check that the table to be removed is not the main one |

Close all open applications |

Make a backup copy of the location of the icons (optional)-->

In some models (for example, POCO F3 s MIUI (13) a cross may be displayed instead of a basket (❌) or the Remove screen button. The functionality remains the same.

Method 2: Reset desktop settings (if deletion is blocked)

If the standard method doesn’t work (the delete button is inactive or not), try resetting the launcher settings, which will return the standard number of desktops (usually 1-2 screens) without losing application data.

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. In the search bar, type Launcher (or Launcher for global firmware).
3. Select the MIUI Launcher app (house icon).
4. Click Warehouse → Delete Data (or Clear Data).
5. Confirm the action and restart the smartphone.

Once you reboot, all desktops will be reset to factory settings, so you have to re-arrange the icons, but all the screens will disappear, and this method also helps if you:

• 🔄 Desktops are duplicated after updating MIUI.
• 🚫 Screen Remove button is not in the menu.
• 👻 There are “ghost” tables that can not be removed in the standard way.

⚠️ Attention: Clearing the launcher data does not delete applications or their data, but will reset: Icon location on the screen; gesture and animation settings; desktop design topics (if customized ones were used).

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Before you reset the launcher, take a screenshot of the current location of the icons, and after cleaning the data, you can quickly restore order by focusing on the screenshots.

Method 3: Using Safe Mode (if third-party software is at fault)

Sometimes, unnecessary desktops appear due to conflicts with installed launchers, themes or optimizers (for example, GO Launcher, Action Launcher or MIUI Themes).To check this, download your smartphone to Safe Mode, where all third-party applications are disabled.

How to run Safe Mode on Xiaomi:

1. Press the power button before the turn off menu appears.
2. Press the Turn Off icon (or Reboot on some models) before a request to switch to Safe Mode appears.
3. Confirm the action and wait for the reboot.

In safe mode:

• Check if there are any desktops left, and if there are none, there is a problem in one of the installed applications.
• Remove recently installed launchers or themes through Settings → Apps.
• Reboot your smartphone in normal mode.

On the POCO X3 Pro and Redmi K40 models with custom firmware (e.g. Pixel Experience), Safe Mode may not disable all third-party services. In this case, use the method with the cleaning of the launcher data (Method 2).

Method 4: Manually edit settings via ADB (for power users)

If none of the above methods worked, you can try removing unnecessary desktops through ADB (Android Debug Bridge), which requires connecting your smartphone to your computer and basic command line knowledge. Use it only as a last resort, as the wrong commands can disrupt the launcher.

Instructions:

1. Turn on USB Debugging on your smartphone: Settings → About Phone → MIUI Version (click 7 times to become a developer) → Return to Settings → Additional → For Developers → Debugging on USB.
2. Connect your smartphone to your PC and confirm the debugging permission.
3. Open the command line (Windows) or terminal (macOS/Linux) and type:

adb shell settings put secure default_workspace_screen_count 2

This command will set the number of desktops to 2. Replace the number with the value you want (minimum - 1). After completing the command, restart the smartphone.

⚠️ Attention: Misuse of the right ADB If after completing commands, the desktops have disappeared completely or the launcher has stopped opening, reset the launcher through Settings. → Annexes → Launcher MIUI → Delete the data.

Method 5: Remove via Mi Home or Mi Cloud (for synchronized devices)

If your Xiaomi smartphone is tied to your Mi Account and settings sync is enabled, you can try resetting your desktop configuration through the cloud, which doesn’t work on all firmware, but it can help in cases where local settings are lost.

1. Open the Settings. → Accounts. → Mi Account.
2. Make sure that the system or desktop settings are synchronized.
3. Go to i.mi.com and log in.
4. In the Devices section, select your smartphone and find the option to Sync settings.
5. Turn off the sync of the desktop, wait 1-2 minutes and turn it on again.
6. Reboot your smartphone.

This method is rarely mentioned in the instructions, but sometimes helps to return the standard number of desktops, especially if the problem occurred after changing the device or recovering from a backup.

For example, users of Xiaomi 13 Pro note that after transferring data from the Redmi Note 9 through the Mi Mover, unnecessary screens appear, and synchronization through the cloud in such cases often solves the problem.

What to do if no one method helps

If you’ve tried all the methods but have excess desktops, the problem may be deeper:

• 🛠️ Firmware failure. Try updating. MIUI Up to the latest version through Settings → Updating the system.
• 🧹 Theme conflict. Set a standard design theme: Settings → Registration → My subjects. → Standard.
• 🔧 Damage to launcher data. Complete reset (data backup is required!): Settings → The phone. → Resetting settings.
• 📱 Hardware problem. On some models (e.g. Redmi) 9A) Desktop bugs are linked to memory failure, and only the service center will help.

If your smartphone is warranty, contact the official Xiaomi service center. Pre-backup data through Settings → Additional → Backup and Reset.

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Before visiting the service center, disable the Mi Account if it was tied, which will speed up the diagnostic process and eliminate problems with locking the device after the reset.

FAQ: Frequent questions about desktops on Xiaomi