How to organize icons on the Xiaomi desktop: a complete guide with pictures and life hacks

The chaos of icons on Xiaomi’s desktop is a problem familiar to every smartphone owner. Even after installing a couple dozen apps, the screen turns into a digital dump, where the WhatsApp icon coexists with a game you launched a year ago, and the folder with photos is lost among a dozen shortcuts. Unlike iOS, where the grid of icons is fixed, the MIUI shell offers flexible tools for organizing the workspace – but not all users know about them.

In this article, we’ll look at 5 proven ways to get your icons in order on Xiaomi (including the Redmi Note 12, Poco X5, Mi 11 and others with MIUI 12-14), learn how to automatically sort icons alphabetically, group them into folders without losing performance, hide unnecessary shortcuts and even create “smart” folders that update themselves, and also reveal the secret why icons sometimes “disappear” after updating the system and how to prevent this.

1. Manual ordering: drag and drop and folder creation

The most obvious, but not always effective, way is to drag and drop icons manually, which is good if you have fewer than 20 apps on the screen and want complete control over the location of each icon.

• 📱 Long tap on the icon → menu with options (in new versions) MIUI The icon will simply “stick” off the screen).
• 🔄 Drag it to the right place. If you hold your finger longer than 1 second, you'll see the folder outline -- throw it there to group it.
• 🗑️ To remove the icon from the screen (without removing the app itself), drag it up to the inscription Delete.
• 🔒 To fix the icon and prevent accidental movement, click on it. → Label information → Turn on the lock.

The downside is that when you add new apps, the icons will go away again if you don't keep track of their location, and if you have Xiaomi with FHD+ screen resolution and above, folders can look overloaded due to small icons.

⚠️ Note: Do not confuse removing the icon from the screen and removing the application. In the first case, the program will remain in the menu All applications, in the second case it will be uninstalled.

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If you have Xiaomi with AMOLED-using the screen, use dark wallpaper and folders with a transparent background - this will reduce the load on the battery by 5-7% by reducing the backlight of the pixels.

2. Automatic sorting by alphabet or category

MIUI hides a useful auto sorting feature that works even on budget models like the Redmi 10A.

1. Open Settings → Desktop (or Lock Screen and Desktop in newer versions).
2. Select Desktop Settings → Sort Applications.
3. Activate the switch Automatic sorting and select the criterion: 🔤 Alphabetically (A-I or I-A). 📁 By category (social networks, games, tools, etc.). ⏱️ Installation time (new ones first).

Once activated, all the icons on the desktop will instantly appear in the selected order, and new apps will be added to the end of the list (or the corresponding category), and the feature works on Poco Launcher if you use it instead of the standard one.

3. Hiding Unnecessary Icons Without Removing Applications

If the desktop is full of shortcuts of rarely used programs (such as Mi Video, Mi Music or preinstalled games), they can be hidden without being deleted. This will free up space and visually simplify the screen.

Method 1: Through the application menu:

1. Swipe up the screen to open All Apps.
2. Press three points (⋮) → Hide applications.
3. Check the unnecessary icons and click Ready.

How to prevent:

1. Before updating, take a screenshot of your desktop (or record a video) – this will help restore order manually.
2. Use Nova Launcher with backup (Settings → Backup/Restore).
3. After the update, don’t click Optimize in the notification – this often resets the settings.

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If icons are reset after each update, turn off automatic optimization in the launcher battery settings (Settings → Battery → Battery Optimization → Launcher → No Limits).

Frequently asked questions