How to change the font on Xiaomi: from standard themes to custom TTF-file

The standard MIUI font on Xiaomi, Redmi or POCO smartphones can seem boring after months of use. Fortunately, the manufacturer provides several ways to change it, from built-in themes to manually install custom fonts in.ttf or.otf format. But not all methods are equally safe: some require unlocking the bootloader, others work only on certain versions of MIUI.

In this guide, we will discuss three working ways to change the font, from the simplest (through theme) to the most advanced (via ADB or Magisk), learn how to avoid errors like “font not applied” or “system failure”, and where to download free fonts optimized for AMOLED screens. Instructions are relevant for MIUI 12-14 and models 2020-2026 (including Xiaomi 13/14, Redmi Note 12, POCO F5).

1. Method: Change the font through MIUI themes (without root)

The safest and most official method is to use a built-in theme gallery. Xiaomi allows you to install fonts from its store, but with restrictions:

• 🔹 Only certified fonts are supported MIUI (There is no way to download your.ttf).
• 🔹 After changing the topic, the font may reset when you update the system.
• 🔹 Not all models support this function (e.g., on the POCO M5 She may be absent).

To change the font through the themes:

1. Open the Themes app (icon with brush).
2. Go to the Fonts section (may be called Text or Typography).
3. Select the font you like and click Apply.
4. Confirm the changes in the pop-up window.

If the Font partition is missing, your firmware is not supporting it, in which case move on to the next method.

2. Method: Install custom font through ADB (without root, but with PC)

This method is suitable for users who want to install their font (such as Montserrat, Open Sans or Comic Sans), but do not want to get root. ADB and Xiaomi drivers.

⚠️ Attention: Wrong commands ADB You can crash your system. Before you start, back up your Settings. → Additionally. → Backup.

Steps for installation:

1. Download the font in.ttf format (we recommend Google Fonts or DaFont). custom_font.ttf.
2. Connect your smartphone to your PC via USB, enable Debugging via USB (Settings → About Phone → MIUI version – press 7 times, then go back to Settings → Additional → For Developers).
3. Open the command line (Win + R → enter cmd) and do:

adb push custom_font.ttf /sdcard/


adb shell




su




mount -o rw,remount /system




cp /sdcard/custom_font.ttf /system/fonts/




chmod 644 /system/fonts/custom_font.ttf




reboot

After the reboot, the font will appear in the theme settings. If it is not available, check the path to /system/fonts/ (on some firmwares it is /system/product/fonts/).

Download the font in format.ttf|Install ADB and Xiaomi drivers|Enable debugging on USB|Create a backup copy of the data|Check the available space on the phone (minimum 50 MB)-->

3. Method: Install font through Magisk (for advanced users)

If the first two methods don't work, you'll have root access.

• 🔓 Unlocked bootloader (bootloader).
• 📱 Installed Magisk (instructions for installation are available on the XDA Developers).
• 💾 FontManager or iFont module.

Procedure:

1. Install the FontManager module via Magisk (you can download it in the module repository).
2. Download the font (.ttf or.otf) and place it in the /sdcard/FontManager folder.
3. Open the FontManager app, select a font and apply it.
4. Reset the device.

⚠️ Note: After installing root, some applications (such as banking) may stop working, and there is a risk of losing warranty if the bootloader was unblocked informally.

4. Where to download fonts for Xiaomi?

Not all fonts are suitable for smartphones. Here are the sources that have been verified:

• 🔤 Google Fonts – free open-license fonts (recommended by Roboto, Noto Sans, Poppins).
• 🎨 DaFont – Large collection of decorative fonts (check license!).
• 📱 CoolApk – Chinese resource with themes and fonts for MIUI (Use an interpreter).
• 💻 GitHub – repositories with optimized fonts for Android (search on request) MIUI font).

Important: Fonts with Cyrillic characters must support Unicode encoding. Before installing, check if Russian letters are displayed in the.ttf file (you can open through any text editor).

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If some characters are shown squares after installing the font, then the font does not support Cyrillic. Download the version marked "Cyrillic" or "Extended".

5. Frequent errors and their solution

When you change the font, you're faced with typical problems, and here's how to fix them:

• ❌ Font not applicable: Check file access rights (chmod) 644). If you use ADB, Make sure the folder /system/fonts/ taped.
• ❌ Phone freezes after reboot: This means the font is damaged or incompatible. Load to Fastboot (press Power) + Vol Down and reflash the system through the Mi Flash Tool.
• ❌ Font reset after update: MIUI Sometimes it resets custom settings, so the solution is to re-install or use the FontManager module with autoboot.
• ❌ Incorrect App Display: Some programs (such as WhatsApp or Telegram) use their own fonts, and can only be modified through root.

If none of the methods worked, check the MIUI version. On some firmware (e.g. MIUI EU or Global Stable), the font change function is disabled, in which case only flashing to the custom version (e.g. xiaomi.eu) will help.

6. How do you get back the standard font?

If the experiment with fonts failed, return the standard MIUI-font:

1. Through themes: Select a standard theme in the Topic app.
2. Through ADB: Remove custom font command: adb shell su rm /system/fonts/custom_font.ttf reboot
3. Through reset: Reset settings in Settings → About Phone → Reset settings (the data will not suffer, but all settings will return to factory).

If the font "broken" after the MIUI update, try clearing the Topic app cache:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find themes and click Clear cache.
3. Reboot the phone.

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Before any typeface manipulation, back up through Settings → Additional → Backup. This will allow you to quickly restore the system if you crash.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions