How to reduce the keyboard on Xiaomi: all the ways for MIUI 12/13/14

The virtual keyboard on Xiaomi smartphones often takes up half the screen, interfering with the viewing of chats or web pages. This is especially annoying for owners of devices with small displays (for example, Redmi 9A or POCO M3), where every centimeter of space counts. Fortunately, MIUI has several ways to reduce the size of the keyboard – both standard means and with third-party applications.

Many users don't realize that you can change the size of the keyboard in two taps. Others try to stretch it with their fingers, but this is a temporary solution — after the reboot everything goes back to factory settings. In this article, we will analyze all the working methods, including hidden MIUI functions, Gboard settings, and even editing system files for advanced users.

If you use Xiaomi with custom firmware (like LineageOS or Pixel Experience), some of the ways may not work. ADB-team.

Before you start settings, check the version of MIUI in the Settings menu → About Phone → MIUI version. This affects the availability of certain features. For example, MIUI 14 has a separate section for controlling the size of the keyboard, which is not available in older versions.

1. Standard method: MIUI settings

The easiest method is to use the built-in MIUI tools, which are suitable for most Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO models based on MIUI 12 and later.

Open any application where the keyboard appears (such as Messages or Notes). When the keyboard is activated, look for the gear icon in its top bar (⚙️) — This is a settings button. Click on it and select Size and layout (or Keyboard Size in some versions).

Here you'll see a slider called Keyboard Height. Move it to the left to reduce the size. Changes are instantaneous, you can immediately evaluate the result. If the slider is not, then your version of MIUI does not support this feature (we'll talk about this in the next section).

• ✅ It works on all smartphones with MIUI 12+ and a standard keyboard
• ⚡ Changes are maintained after reboot
• 🔄 You can return the factory settings at any time.

If the keyboard gets too small after the keyboard is reduced, try turning on one-handed mode. To do this, in the same keyboard settings, find the option One-handed mode and select a position (left or right), the keyboard will shrink and shift to the edge of the screen, freeing up space for content.

2. Size resizing via Gboard (Google Keyboard)

If you don't like the standard MIUI keyboard, you can install Gboard, Google's official keyboard, which offers more customization options, including flexible size control.

First, install Gboard from Google Play, then activate it in your phone settings:

1. Go to Settings → System → Language and input → Virtual keyboard.
2. Select Keyboard Management and turn on Gboard.
3. Go back and press the Current Keyboard, then select Gboard.

Now open any application with text input, call the keyboard and click on the gear icon (⚙️). Go to Settings. → Themes and layout → Keyboard size. Here you'll find a slider to adjust the height. Gboard also has a floating mode option that allows you to move the keyboard around the screen and change the size of the keyboard with gestures.

The advantage of Gboard is that the keyboard syncs with your Google account, so your settings will remain even after you reset your phone, and there are advanced themes, gesture support, and built-in translator.

Install Gboard from Google Play|

Activate in system settings |

Select theme and size of the keyboard |

Set up gestures and floating mode-->

3. Hidden MIUI settings (for advanced)

Some versions of MIUI (especially older devices) may not have standard ways to resize the keyboard, but there is a hidden method through the Engineering Menu or ADB. This method requires caution - wrong actions can disrupt the system.

If you are willing to take the risk, connect your phone to your computer and execute the following command via ADB:

adb shell settings put secure miui_keyboard_height_scale 0.8

Here, 0.8 is the scale factor (you can set the value from 0.5 to 1.0). After you execute the command, restart the device.

To return to the factory settings, use:

adb shell settings delete secure miui_keyboard_height_scale

⚠️ Attention: Use ADB It can cause keyboard failures if you enter the wrong settings. Before experimenting, back up your data through Settings. → Additionally. → Backup.

If you are not familiar with ADB, try an alternative method through the engineering menu:

1. Open the Phone app and enter the code ##6484##.
2. In the Keyboard settings menu, find the Height scale option.
3. Set the value from 500 (minimum size) to 1000 (maximum size).

4. Third-party keyboards with flexible settings

If embedded solutions don't work, consider alternative keyboards, which offer more customization options, including fine-tuning size, transparency and location.

Top.-3 Keyboard for Xiaomi with support for resizing:

• 🔹 SwiftKey – allows you to adjust the height of the keyboard, supports gestures and cloud synchronization.
• 🔹 Fleksy – Minimalist keyboard with floating mode and adjustable size.
• 🔹 Chroom – keyboard with support for themes and manual height adjustment.

To establish any of them:

1. Download the app from Google Play.
2. Activate it in Settings → System → Language and input.
3. Launch the keyboard and find in its settings the Size or Layout section.

For example, in SwiftKey, the path to size settings is: Settings → Layout → Keyboard height. Here you can choose one of three pre-sizes or set a custom value.

💡

If the third-party keyboard fails to appear after you install it, restart the phone. Sometimes MIUI blocks new keyboards before restarting the system.

5. editing system files (root only)

This is an extreme method that is only suitable for users with root rights and experience with system files, which allows you to manually change the settings of the keyboard, but if you are careless, it can lead to the collapse of the system.

If you are confident in your abilities, follow the following steps:

1. Install a file manager with root support (such as Root Explorer or Solid Explorer).
2. Go to /system/usr/keyboard/ (the path may vary depending on the version of MIUI).
3. Find the file. miui_keyboard_config.xml Open it in the text editor.
4. Change the parameter. <keyboard_height_scale>1.0</keyboard_height_scale> by the appropriate value (e.g, 0.7).
5. Save the file, set resolutions 644 (rw-r--r---) and restart the device.

⚠️ Warning: Incorrect editing of system files can lead to bootloop ( looped boot).Before changes, create a full backup through TWRP Or OrangeFox.

If the keyboard stopped working after the changes, return the original values or restore the file from the backup. You can also try to clear the keyboard cache in Settings → Applications → Application Management → Keyboard → Storage → Clear the cache.

6. Additional Optimization Tips

Reducing the size of your keyboard is only part of the solution, and to make your smartphone even more convenient, use these tips:

• 📱 Include navigation gestures in Settings → Display. → Navigation panel. This will free up the space at the bottom of the screen that the button bar normally occupies.
• 🔍 Use immersive viewing mode (full screen mode). To do this, swipe your finger from the bottom up and hold for a few seconds - the navigation bar will disappear.
• 🎨 Adjust the theme of the keyboard to the color of the wallpaper. MIUI You can choose a transparent or minimalist theme so that the keyboard is less distracting.

If you type large texts often, try voice input. In Gboard, it's activated by a button with a microphone (🎤). This will not reduce the keyboard, but will eliminate the need to use it.

For owners of Xiaomi with AMOLED-screens (e.g. Xiaomi 12 or Redmi) K50) You can turn on a dark theme for the keyboard, and not only does it save battery power, it also visually reduces the presence of the battery on the screen. → Dark.

💡

The most reliable way to reduce the keyboard is to use Gboard or SwiftKey, which offer more customization than the standard MIUI keyboard, and work consistently on all firmware versions.

FAQ: Frequent questions