How to increase the size of the icons on Xiaomi: all the ways

Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco smartphone owners often face the challenge of adapting the interface to their needs, especially if vision requires larger controls. The standard MIUI shell or the new HyperOS offer flexible personalization tools, but not everyone knows where the sliders are hiding. The magnification of icons is not just a matter of aesthetics, but an important aspect of ergonomics that affects the speed of the device.

There are several proven methods to make app icons more visible without losing image quality. We'll look at the system's regular tools, hidden engineering menus and third-party launchers that give maximum control over the appearance of the desktop. It's important to understand that each method has its own characteristics and limitations, depending on the version of the Android operating system.

Before making any changes, it’s worth noting that scaling elements often affects the number of apps that fit on a single screen.Pixel density (DPI) is a key parameter that governs this process at the system level. In the following sections, we’ll go into detail each way so you can choose the most suitable one for your model.

Use of built-in theme and screen settings

The safest and easiest way to change the visual experience of the interface is to use standard shell tools. Settings → Screen often hides basic controls that allow you to change the font size and scale of interface elements. While there may not be a direct slider “icon size” there, changing the overall scale of the system automatically increases the graphical elements of the applications.

The second important tool is the Themes app, which is pre-installed on all the brand’s smartphones, and inside the theme store you can find customized design packages that contain enlarged icons, and when you use this theme, the system replaces standard graphics with larger, contrasting graphics, which often solves the problem without deep customization intervention.

The third option in the standard functionality is to use the mode "Simple" or "Lite", which is specially designed for older people or users who prefer large elements, and it radically changes the interface, making icons as large as possible and fonts readable from any distance.

• 📱 Go to Settings. → Screen and find the scale slider.
• 🎨 Open the Topics app and search for "Large Icons".
• 👴 Activate the “Simple” mode through Settings → Advanced settings.

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Before installing a new theme, be sure to take a screenshot of the current desktop to remember the location of important widgets and folders.

Consider that third-party themes can slightly increase the load on the device’s RAM, although this is almost invisible on modern models. If you use the Redmi Note or older series, check the smoothness of animations after changing the design. In some cases, heavy themes can cause micro-latency when scrolling through pages.

Configure through the menu of special features

Android has powerful tools for people with disabilities that can be useful for ordinary users, and the Special Features section contains features that allow you to force the user interface elements to increase, and it is a system layer that runs on top of any installed themes and launchers.

One of the key features is zoom in. When you activate it, you can zoom in on a double or triple tap, but if you want to work with big icons, you can use the big text feature or similar settings depending on the version of MIUI, and they affect the rendering of the graphic elements of the system.

⚠️ Warning: Enabling some features can change swipe and navigation gesture behaviors that you’ll need to get used to in the first days of use.

Also in this section, you often see a "High Text Contrast" or "Color Inversion" setting that visually highlights icons in the background, making them more visible. It doesn't change their physical size in pixels, but it improves perception. For visually impaired users, the combination of large font and high contrast is often more effective than just zooming.

Change DPI through Developer Settings

For advanced users who don't have enough standard tools, there's a method of changing the density of dots per inch, known as DPI (Dots Per Inch), which tells the system how dense the output of the image should be. Reducing the DPI value makes the system think the screen has less resolution, and it automatically enlarges all elements, including icons, fonts and buttons.

To access these settings, you need to activate the developer menu. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly click on the MIUI build number seven times. After the message “You became a developer”, a new section “Additional” or “Extended settings” will appear in the settings menu, where the desired item is hidden.

Inside the developer menu, find the "Minimum Width" (or "Smallest Width") item, write down the initial value (usually 360, 392 or 411 depending on the model) to be able to go back to factory settings, and reducing that number by 20-40 units will give a noticeable visual effect of zooming in.

Example of change:


Reference value: 392




New value: 340




The result: The icons will become much larger.

• 🔧 Activate Developer Mode with seven-time press on build version.
• 📉 Find the "Minimum Width" item in the Developer Menu.
• 💾 Write down the initial value before making any changes.
• 📐 Reduce the value gradually, Step-by-step 10-15 unit.

It's important to understand that changing the DPI affects all applications at once. In some programs, layouts can go because they're not designed for such large elements. The system interface will become more spacious, but the amount of information that fits on a single screen will decrease. This is a trade-off between the size of the elements and the capacity of the workspace.

Application of third-party launchers

If Xiaomi’s built-in tools seem limited to you, the best solution is to install a third-party launcher. Launcher is an application that completely replaces the desktop, app menu and control panel. Popular options such as Nova Launcher, Microsoft Launcher or Smart Launcher allow you to adjust the size of icons to pixel accuracy.

Once you install the launcher from Google Play, you need to give it permissions. HyperOS can request confirmation to change the standard desktop application — agree. In the new launcher settings, find the "Look" or "Grid" section, where the slider will be "Icon Size".

The main advantage of this method is complete independence from system updates Xiaomi. Even if the manufacturer changes the customization policy in future versions of Android, your launcher will save all settings.

It's worth noting that some heavy launchers can consume more RAM resources, which on budget Redmi or Poco models can lead to more frequent closure of background applications. Choose optimized solutions if your smartphone has less than 4GB of RAM. Visual customization should not go to the detriment of performance.

Using widgets instead of icons

An alternative and often more aesthetic way to increase the visual size of applications is to use widgets. Instead of a small icon, you can place a large widget on your desktop that will occupy a significant part of the screen, and this is especially true for commonly used programs: messengers, players, weather or calendar.

Most modern applications support widgets of different sizes, so to add one, you need to pinch the empty space on your desktop, select the "Widgets" item, and find the right application. Many widgets allow you to resize by simply pulling the edges, which gives you flexibility in space planning.

This method does not require any system settings or third-party software installation, making it safe and stable. MIUI widgets often look more nuanced and harmoniously fit into the shell design than redrawn icons. You can combine large widgets with conventional icons to create a unique dashboard.

⚠️ Warning: A large number of active widgets, especially those that update in real time (news, weather), can increase battery consumption.

For maximum effect, you can create a widget folder by putting a shortcut inside the application group that can also be scaled. However, standard folders in Xiaomi are fixed in size, so using widgets-folders from third-party developers (for example, through launcher widgets) will give you a better result, which turns the desktop into a control panel with large, convenient buttons.

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Using widgets is the best way to increase the size of frequently used applications without the risk of system stability or loss of warranty.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

To sum up, Xiaomi provides enough tools to make the interface comfortable. Whether it’s simple themes, powerful launchers or developer system settings, every user will be able to find the optimal balance between icon size and functionality. Experiment with settings carefully, and your smartphone will become even more convenient in daily use.