How to remove shortcuts on Android Xiaomi: the complete guide

Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco smartphones often face the need to clean up their desktops. Over time, the screen is overgrown with dozens of icons, folders and widgets, making navigation difficult and reducing the aesthetic appeal of the interface. Removing excess elements is not just a matter of cleanliness, but also a way to improve the productivity of the device.

The process of removing shortcuts in the shells of MIUI and the new HyperOS has its own features that differ from stock Android. Understanding these nuances allows you to manage screen space more efficiently. In this article, we will discuss in detail all ways to clean the desktop, from standard methods to advanced system settings.

You will learn to distinguish between shortcut removal and app uninstallation, which is a critical skill for any user, and will also address the specific issues where icons are not removed in the standard way, and how to solve them.

Basic methods of removing application icons

The most obvious and common way to remove the excess from the screen is to use a standard control menu. On most Xiaomi devices, this process is intuitive, but requires accurate execution of actions. The user needs to find an unnecessary shortcut on the desktop and click on it, holding his finger for 1-2 seconds.

After that, the interface will go into editing mode, and at the top or bottom of the screen (depending on the version of the MIUI shell), a toolbar with various options will appear, including a button with a basket or cross, designed specifically for removal.

⚠️ Warning: Removing the shortcut from the desktop does not always mean removing the application itself from the device's memory.

In some cases, the system may offer two options: Delete and Delete the application. The first option will simply hide the icon, the second option will completely uninstall the program. Be careful when choosing so that you do not accidentally erase important data.

If you use the classic desktop mode (from the app menu), removing the shortcut will only affect a specific icon on the screen, leaving the app in the general list. In No menu mode (when all apps are on screens), removing the shortcut often equates to a full uninstall.

Removing folders and widgets from the desktop

In addition to single shortcuts, screens often accumulate folders and widgets that also take up space, and deleting a folder is like deleting an application: you need to pinch a folder and drag it to the basket, but there's an important caveat here: deleting the folder doesn't delete the applications inside it.

Weather, watch or news widgets require a separate approach, they are often larger and can be blocked from random movement, and to remove the widget, you also need to pinch it and wait for the control menu to appear.

• 📂 To delete the folder, drag it to the top of the screen where the zone "Delete" will appear".
• ⏰ Watch and calendar widgets are removed through the context menu after a long press.
• 🌤️ Weather widgets may require removal confirmation through a pop-up window.
• 📁 If the folder is empty, it will disappear automatically after the last shortcut is removed inside.

Particular attention should be paid to system widgets that are preinstalled by the manufacturer, some of which, for example, the "Security" or "Scanner" widget, can be protected from removal or require administrator rights for modification, in which case the system will issue an appropriate warning.

Cleaning widgets often frees up more visual space than removing simple icons. Large news widgets or Google feeds can take up half the screen, hiding important apps. Regularly reviewing widgets helps keep the interface ergonomic at a high level.

Difference Between Label Deletion and Uninstallation

It's critical to understand the technical difference between deleting a shortcut and deleting an application. A shortcut is just a pointer link, a small file that tells the system which program to run. An application is a collection of files, libraries and data that takes up megabytes or gigabytes of memory.

When you remove the shortcut in No App Menu mode, Android often interprets this as a command to completely uninstall. However, in App Drawer mode, removing the icon from the home screen leaves the program in the system. It continues to take up space, receive updates and spend resources in the background.

To clean the device completely, you have to go to the settings, and the path usually looks like this: Settings → Applications → All applications. You can find the program here and select the "Delete" option. This action will free up real space in the internal storage.

There's also the concept of "Hidden Apps." There's a Hidden Apps feature in the MIUI shell that removes the app icons from the menu, but doesn't remove the program itself. It's a useful feature to keep the program private, but it doesn't help to make room. To find hidden apps, you need to spread your fingers in the app menu or check the settings in the Apps section.

Configure the display of icons in MIUI and HyperOS

Xiaomi shells provide powerful customization tools, so you can not only remove shortcuts, but also change the way they are displayed, and this allows you to visually reduce clutter without physically removing applications, and these settings are accessed through long-term clicking on an empty desktop area.

You can change the grid size from the desktop settings menu, and the standard value is often 5x6 or 6x5, which allows you to place many icons, increase the size of icons or reduce the number of cells in the grid will make the screen cleaner, and you can also change the size of the signature font under the icons.

• 🎨 Design themes: allow you to change (shape) icons, making them less noticeable or, conversely, more contrasting.
• 🔍 App search: New versions of HyperOS can hide all icons and leave only the search bar, which is a radical way to clean up.
• 📱 One-hand mode: changes the location of controls for convenience, which can affect the shortcut removal area.
• 🔄 Animation: Disabling animations when deleting speeds up the process of mass cleaning of the desktop.

Importantly, HyperOS has a "Super Wallpaper" feature and improved widgets that can override shortcuts. If the shortcut is gone by itself, check if it's blocked by a new widget or wallpaper layer. Sometimes it helps to simply reset the launcher settings through the Settings menu → Apps → System → Desktop → Reset.

⚠️ Note: When changing the theme through the Topics app, shortcuts may change their appearance or location. Before changing the topic globally, it is recommended to take a screenshot of the current location of the icons.

Solving problems: When the label is not removed

Sometimes users are faced with a situation where the shortcut "hangs" or does not respond to removal attempts, this can be caused by a malfunction of the launcher (desktop shell) or damage to the system cache, in which case the standard drag and drop to the basket does not work.

The first step is to force the Desktop or Launcher application to close. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps, search for Desktop (or System Launcher) and click Stop. After that, the screen blinks and the shortcuts reboot. Often the problem resolves itself.

If a simple restart didn't work, you can try clearing the launcher's cache. In the same app menu, select Memory → Clear the cache. This action is safe and won't delete your personal data or icon location, but it will reset temporary files that could have caused a glitch.

In more complex cases, where the shortcut is the remnant of a remote application (called a “broken shortcut”), the system may not allow it to be removed, and a third-party launcher, such as Nova Launcher or Microsoft Launcher, will help. By installing an alternative launcher, you will be able to remove the stubborn shortcut through a more flexible management interface.

💡

If the shortcut to an application that has already been removed is still on the screen and is not deleted, try renaming it. Sometimes changing the name through third-party editors allows the system to correctly process the command to remove.

Using third-party launchers to manage shortcuts

The standard MIUI launcher is functional, but sometimes limited in terms of bulk shortcut processing. Third-party launchers offer advanced desktop management features that allow you to create complex rules, hide applications without removing them, and group shortcuts by terms.

When you install a third-party launcher, like Nova Launcher, it becomes the main interface. All shortcuts from a standard desktop will be imported. They are managed through a more detailed menu. You can remove shortcuts by swipe, set up automatic sorting or hide entire categories of applications.

One of the advantages of third-party solutions is the ability to create "empty" shortcuts or separator shortcuts that help structure the space, and many launchers have a backup function for desktop configuration, which allows you to quickly restore order after a phone is reset.

However, it is worth remembering that third-party launchers can consume more battery resources than Xiaomi’s optimized system launcher. If you value autonomy above customization, it is better to limit yourself to the standard shell settings. For most users, there are enough features built into the system interface.

💡

Third-party launchers are a powerful solution for advanced users, but can reduce the autonomy of the device compared to the standard shell. MIUI/HyperOS.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)