How to remove shortcuts on Xiaomi phone: the complete guide

Modern Xiaomi smartphones, including the Redmi and POCO brands, offer users incredibly flexible options for personalizing the interface. However, the abundance of pre-installed apps and random shortcuts that appear after updates can turn the desktop into chaos. Many device owners are faced with the question of how to effectively clean up and remove unnecessary icons to speed access to the desired features.

The process of removing controls can vary depending on the version of the MIUI firmware or the new HyperOS, as well as the type of desktop used. In this article, we will discuss all possible scenarios in detail, from standard removal to solving problems with undeletable widgets and system errors, you will learn how to manage screen space professionally.

Before you start taking action, it's important to understand what kind of object you're dealing with. A label can lead to an app, be a weather widget or news feed, and sometimes it's just an advertising module. Proper identification of an item is the first step to a clean and user-friendly interface for your gadget.

Basic methods for removing standard applications

The easiest way to get rid of the badge is to use the standard Android operating system mechanism, adapted by Xiaomi engineers, and just find a badge on your desktop and pin it with your finger for one or two seconds, and the screen will change, and a special toolbar will appear on the top or bottom.

If you want to completely remove the app along with its data, drag the icon to a shopping cart that says Delete or Uninstall.The system will request confirmation, as this action is irreversible.This is ideal for games you no longer play or duplicate browsers.

If the application is system-critical and critical to the OS, the delete button may not be available, and the system will suggest an alternative: remove the shortcut from the desktop, leaving the program itself in the menu, which helps to maintain visual clarity without compromising the integrity of the system.

⚠️ Warning: Removing system components such as Security, Explorer or Google Play Services may cause your phone to malfunction or lose access to your account.

Sometimes users confuse app shortcuts with folders, and if you pinch an icon and it sticks to another, a folder forms, and to remove the shortcut from the folder, just drag it outside the container, and then delete it in the standard way, and the file structure doesn't suffer.

Management of widgets and news feeds

Often the widgets, which are dynamic blocks that display weather, currency rates or steps, take up significantly more space than normal icons, and they also use the long-press method to remove them, but you need to select the option to delete the widget from the menu that appears, rather than simply move it.

And you should pay special attention to the left-hand side of the desktop, known as Google Discover or Yandex, and many users want to turn it off because they think it's too much. Click on the empty space on the desktop to go into editing mode, and find the settings for the Additional Screens, where you can just switch the switch to off.

Weather widgets on MIUI often have their own display settings. If standard deletion doesn't help, maybe the widget is fixed in the theme, in which case changing the theme to standard Classic or Default returns the ability to control the interface elements.

• 🌤️ To remove the weather widget, press it and select Remove in the top menu.
• 📰 The news feed on the left can be disabled via the desktop editing menu.
• 🔒 Some widgets are blocked by antivirus, check the security settings.

If the widget is stuck and doesn't respond to touch, try restarting the device, often solving problems with the System UI graphical shell, which is responsible for rendering elements on the screen.

Working with undeletable system labels

There's a category of apps that Xiaomi considers mandatory: Mi Video, Mi Music, Browser. You can't remove them in the standard way, the button will be gray or absent. But you can still free up space on your desktop.

Use Hidden. Go to Settings, find the App section, and select which one you want. Click Delete (if available) or Disable. Once you turn off, the shortcut will disappear from the desktop and menu, although the file will remain in memory. This is a safe way to "clean" the interface.

For advanced users, it is possible to delete via ADB (Android Debug Bridge), a method that requires a computer connection and basic command line knowledge, and allows you to remove even deep system packages, but requires caution.

adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.miui.videoplayer

The command above, for example, will remove the video player MIUI For the current user, remember that the use of ADB-commands without understanding their purpose can cause a cyclic bootloop of the device. Always check the name of the packet before entering the command.

⚠️ Warning: Before using debugging methods, be sure to turn on developer mode. To do this, click on Version 7 times. MIUI in the section About the telephone.

Folder settings and application grouping

If deletion is impossible or impractical, the best solution is a competent grouping. Creating folders helps structure the space. Just drag and drop one application onto another to create a container. Call the folder by a clear name, like Finance or Games.

You can also remove shortcuts inside folders. Open the folder, pinch the unnecessary item and drag it to the cross. This is especially convenient for cleaning folders with games or social networks that you rarely use. The menu structure will become more logical.

Use the sort function. In desktop editing mode (two finger pinch), the Sort button is often available, and it automatically plots shortcuts by alphabet or installation date, making it easier to find the right object for later removal.

• 📁 Group applications by frequency of use.
• 🗑️ Check the Downloads folder regularly for temporary shortcuts.
• 📱 Use the second folder level for rare programs.

Remember, deleting the shortcut from the folder doesn't remove the app itself unless it was moved there specifically for uninstallation. It's just a way of organizing space.

Comparison of Desktop Cleaning Methods

To make it easier for you to choose the right way to clean up, we have prepared a comparative table that will help you assess the risks and effectiveness of various methods depending on your goal and level of training.

As you can see from the table, standard methods are sufficient for most users, and ADB is only justified in extreme cases where standard MIUI tools do not produce the desired result.

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If you change wallpaper and themes frequently, use third-party launchers like Nova Launcher, which let you hide shortcuts without removing them by simply hiding them from view.

Solving the problem: if the label is not removed

There are times when the system is not behaving properly: the icon does not move, the delete menu does not appear, or the Remove button is inactive. Often this is due to a crowded launcher cache. Clearing the cache of the application System Launcher in the application settings can solve the problem.

Another reason is access rights. If the phone is in Guest mode or has parental controls restrictions, deleting apps can be blocked. Check the user profile, you may be in guest mode.

It's also worth checking if the shortcut is part of an active theme, with some third-party themes from Themes store fixing the icons' location rigidly. Switching to a standard Classic theme removes those limitations and takes back full control of the desktop.

⚠️ Warning: If after removing the shortcut, the phone started to run slower or errors appeared, try resetting the launcher settings or restarting the device in safe mode for diagnosis.

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In 90% of cases, removal problems are solved by simply restarting the smartphone or switching the theme to a standard one.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)