How to remove unnecessary icons from the screen of the Xiaomi phone: from widgets to system icons

Why Clean Your Smartphone Screen and What Icons You Can Remove

Xiaomi's smartphone screen eventually turns into a mess of dozens of icons, with rarely used apps, duplicate shortcuts, and system-imposed widgets. Even after uninstallation, their icons sometimes remain on the desktop, taking up space and distracting attention. But not all icons are equally useful — some can be hidden or removed without consequences, and others should not be touched.

In this article, we will analyze how to get rid of unnecessary elements on the screen of any Xiaomi model – from budget Redmi Note to flagship Xiaomi 14. Cover all types of icons: apps (including preinstalled ones), widgets, system icons (such as Google Discover or Mi Video), and also deal with dead shortcuts that are not removed by standard methods. MIUI 14/15, which allow you to control the display of elements without root rights.

It is important to understand the difference between deleting (completely erasing an application or shortcut) and hiding (temporary removal from the screen with the possibility of recovery). For example, system applications like Mi Community or Mi Pay cannot be removed, but they can be hidden or disabled, while user programs (such as games or messengers) are deleted without a trace.

Method 1: Remove application icons through the menu

The easiest method is to remove unnecessary apps directly from the desktop, which works for all icons except system ones (they need to be removed differently, more on this below).

• 📱 Press and hold your finger on the icon of the application you want to remove.
• 🗑️ At the top of the screen, a basket will appear (or the inscription Delete.
• ⚠️ If you have a Remove and Disable menu instead of a shopping cart, select the one you want. Disable the app but doesn't erase its data.
• 🔄 For some system applications (such as Mi Music or Mi Browser), only Hide is available.

This method is suitable for most user programs, but it will not work for:

• 📌 Widgets (they must be removed separately, see Method 3).
• 🔒 System applications (e.g. Settings, Phone, Camera).
• 📁 Application folders (you must first open and delete the content).

If the icon returns to the screen after dragging it to the cart, then the application is protected from removal, in which case, try to disable it (see Method 2) or hide it through the launcher settings (Method 4).

Method 2: Disabling or removing system applications

Xiaomi system applications (e.g. Mi Video, Mi Community, Cleaner) cannot be removed by standard methods, but they can be disabled or hidden.Switching off removes the application from the menu and stops it from working, but does not free up space in memory.Hiding just removes the icon from the screen.

To disable the system application:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find the app you want in the list (use search if it’s not in the visible area).
3. Click on it and select Disable (if the option is active).
4. Confirm the action in the window that appears.

If the Disable button is inactive, the application is critical to the system, in which case you can try to hide its icon through the launcher settings (see Method 4) or use ADB to force the shutdown (Method 5).

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Before disabling system applications, check if other functionality depends on them, for example, disabling Mi Account can disrupt cloud backup.

⚠️ Attention: Disabling system applications can lead to unstable phone operation. For example, disabling Mi Share will disrupt the fast file transfer function, and disabling Security will turn off the virus scanner and device protection. Always check which functions depend on the application being disabled.

Method 3: Remove widgets and empty icons

Widgets (weather, clock, notes) and "dead" icons (remote app shortcuts) are removed differently from normal icons.

• 📱 Press and hold the widget on the desktop.
• 🗑️ Drag it to the basket that appears or click Delete in the context menu.
• 🔄 If the widget is not removed, first remove it from the widget menu: click on the blank area of the screen. → Widgets → Find the right one and swipe up.

To remove the “dead” icons (which remain after uninstallation of the application):

• 🔍 Try to reboot your phone – sometimes the icons disappear after a reboot.
• 🛠️ If it doesn't help, clear the launcher's cache: Settings → Annexes → Application management → Launcher (MIUI Launcher) → Warehouse → Clear the cache.
• 📦 In extreme cases, reset the launcher settings: Settings → Annexes → Application management → Launcher → Warehouse → Reset settings (this won’t delete your data, but will return the standard icon layout).

If there are still icons from Google (such as Google Tips or Google Assistant) on the screen, they can be hidden through the launcher settings (Method 4) or disabled in the Google App settings.

Method 4: Hiding icons through the settings of the MIUI launcher

MIUI allows you to hide your application icons without deleting them, and it's useful for system programs that you can't turn off, or for applications that you rarely use but don't want to delete.

1. Open the app menu (click up from the bottom of the screen).
2. Click on the three dots in the top right corner (or swipe right if you have a MIUI 14+).
3. Choose Hide Apps.
4. Tick the apps you want to hide and click Ready.

To bring back hidden apps:

• 🔍 Enter the name of the application in search (click down from the top of the screen).
• 📱 Or reopen Hidden Apps in the menu and uncheck the boxes.

This method works for all applications, including system ones, but does not affect widgets and folders, nor does it physically remove apps — they remain in the phone’s memory and can be updated through Google Play.

⚠️ Note: Applications hidden through the launcher still take up space in memory and can receive updates. If the goal is to free up storage, it is better to delete or disable them completely (see Method 2).

Method 5: Remove system applications via ADB (for advanced applications)

If standard methods don't work, and the system application is in a big way, you can uninstall it through ADB (Android Debug Bridge), which requires connecting the phone to your computer and basic command line knowledge. Be careful: the wrong commands can disrupt the phone!

Instructions:

1. Turn on Developer Mode on your phone: Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (click 7 times).
2. Activate Debugging by USB in Settings → Additional → For developers.
3. Connect your phone to your PC and open the command line (or Terminal on Mac/Linux).
4. Check the connection command: Adb devices should appear serial number of your device.
5. Remove the application by command (replace com.example.app with the application package): adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.example.app

Examples of packages of popular system applications Xiaomi:

• 🎵 Mi Music: com.miui.player
• 🌐 Mi Browser: com.android.browser
• 📺 Mi Video: com.miui.videoplayer
• 🧹 Cleaner: com.miui.cleanmaster

To return the remote application, use the command:

adb shell cmd package install-existing com.example.app

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Removal via ADB does not require root rights, but is valid only for the current user.After a phone reset or MIUI update, applications can return.

⚠️ Note: Some applications (e.g., com.miui.home) are critical to the system, and removing them will cause the phone to fail and require flashing. Always check the name of the package before deleting it!

Method 6: Reset the launcher settings (if nothing helps)

If after all the manipulations on the screen there are extra icons, widgets or broken markup, resetting the launcher settings will help, this will return the standard location of the icons and delete all user settings of the desktop (but will not affect the application data).

How to drop the launcher:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find the launcher (or MIUI Launcher) in the list.
3. Select Warehouse. → Reset the settings.
4. Confirm the action.

After discharge:

• 📱 All icons will return to standard places.
• 🗑️ Widgets and folders will be deleted.
• 🔄 Theme and theme will remain unchanged.

If the reset didn't work, try clearing the launcher's cache (same Warehouse menu → Clear cache). In extreme cases, you can reinstall the launcher via Google Play (unless you have the standard version of MIUI).

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

When deleting icons, users often face typical problems, and here are the most common mistakes and solutions:

If none of these methods worked, check if you have a third-party launcher (like Nova Launcher or Apex Launcher) on your phone, in which case the icon settings are managed through this launcher, rather than through the standard MIUI menu.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions