Are you tired of squinting while trying to see the small letters on your Xiaomi keyboard? Or want to make the text larger for ease of typing in instant messengers? Enlarging the font on the virtual keyboard is a task that many users of Redmi, POCO or Mi smartphones face. Unfortunately, in standard MIUI settings, this option is often hidden or absent at all - it all depends on the version of the firmware and the keyboard installed.
In this article, we’ll look at 5 proven ways to zoom in on the font, from built-in MIUI tools to settings on popular keyboards (Gboard, SwiftKey), and why text sizes are sometimes reset after an update and how to fix them. All instructions are relevant for MIUI 12-14 devices (including Redmi Note 12, POCO X5, Xiaomi 13, and other models).
1. Enlarge the font through the MIUI system settings
The most obvious way is to resize the font throughout the smartphone interface, which will automatically affect the keyboard (though not always significantly).
- Open the Settings → Screen.
- Select Text Size (or Font Size in Older Versions).
- Move the slider to the right to enlarge the text, and you can see the values from Small to Very Large.
- Click Ready and restart the device (this is important for applying keyboard changes!).
Limitation: System zooming increases the font in all applications, not just on the keyboard. If you only need to resize on the keyboard, read on.
2. Adjust font size in Gboard (Google keyboard)
Gboard is the most popular alternative to the standard MIUI keyboard, offering flexible font settings that are not found in the native app.
- 📱 Open any field to enter text (for example, WhatsApp or Telegram).
- 🔧 Click on the icon. ⚙️ (gear) in the top panel of the keyboard to open the settings of Gboard.
- 🎨 Go to Topics. → Create your own theme.
- 🔍 In the Text section, select Key Size and Text Size - move the sliders to the right.
Important: Gboard has a theme size, so if you pick a finished theme from the gallery, your settings will reset, to save the change, create your own theme and apply it.
Update Gboard to the latest version on Google Play
Backup your current theme (Settings → Themes → Save)
Make sure you have enough free space (theme settings require ~50MB)
Reboot your smartphone after the changes are applied-->
3. Change the font in SwiftKey (alternative keyboard)
SwiftKey is another popular keyboard with advanced customization options, where you can zoom in the font regardless of system settings:
- Launch SwiftKey and open the settings through the icon ⚙️.
- Go to Topics → Set up the current topic.
- Select the key size (affects the height of the buttons) and the font size (changes the text on the keys).
- For maximum effect, set both parameters on the Big or Very Large.
Tip: SwiftKey has Adaptive Size (in keyboard settings) and disable it if the font automatically decreases when typed.
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If the font resets after the SwiftKey update, delete the app cache in the Android settings (Settings → Apps → SwiftKey → Memory → Clear cache).
4.Using third-party launchers for scaling
If system methods didn’t work, you can go a detour by rescaling the display through the launcher (desktop shell), for example, Nova Launcher or Action Launcher allow you to increase the size of interface elements, including the keyboard.
Instructions for Nova Launcher:
- Install Nova Launcher from Google Play.
- Press the finger free space on the desktop → Settings.
- Go to the icon size and set the value of 130%-150 percent.
- Return to Additional → Font Scale and select Large.
⚠️ Note: This method does not work on all Xiaomi models. on some devices (e.g. Redmi) 9A) Launchers cannot override the system scale of the keyboard.
5. Manual modification via ADB (for power users)
If none of the above methods worked, the last option is editing system parameters via ADB (Android Debug Bridge), which requires connecting a smartphone to a PC and basic command line knowledge.
Step-by-step:
- Enable Developer Mode on Xiaomi: Settings → About Phone → MIUI Version (click 7 times)
- Activate USB Debugging in Settings → Additional → For developers.
- Connect your smartphone to your PC and execute the command: adb shell settings put system font_scale 1.3 (where 1.3 — scaling factor; maximum value — 1.5).
- Reset the device.
⚠️ Attention: Misuse of the right ADB This can cause your smartphone to malfunction. If you're not sure what you're doing, skip this method or see a specialist.
What to do if after ADB-The team's font was too big?
Comparison of methods: which one to choose?
To make it easier for you to determine, we have collected the key features of each method in the table:
| Method | Difficulty | Impact on the system | Works on all models? | You need a PC? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| System settings of MIUI | ⭐ (simple) | Changes the font throughout the interface | Yes. | No. |
| Gboard settings | ⭐⭐ (middle-of-the-road) | Just the keyboard. | Yes (if Gboard is installed) | No. |
| SwiftKey settings | ⭐⭐ (middle-of-the-road) | Just the keyboard. | Yes (if SwiftKey is installed) | No. |
| Third-party launchers | ⭐⭐⭐ (difficult) | Can affect productivity | No (depending on the model) | No. |
| ADB-team | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (difficult) | Systemic changes | Yes. | Yes. |
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For most users, the best option is to customize the font in Gboard or SwiftKey, which requires no root rights, is safe and gives maximum control over the size of the text.
Frequent problems and their solutions
Even after successful font size changes, Xiaomi users face typical challenges.
- 🔄 Font resets after update MIUI. Reason: Updates often reset user settings. Solution: Reset the font after installing the new firmware version. If you use Gboard, export the theme in advance (Settings) → Topics → Exports).
- 📱 Some keys are cropped, because the font size and the keyboard theme are incompatible, so try to reduce the size by 10 to 15 percent or change the theme to the standard one.
- ⚙️ There is no "Font Size" item in the keyboard settings. Make sure you have the latest version of the app installed. For example, in Gboard before version 10.5, the option was hidden. Update the keyboard via Google Play.
⚠️ Attention: On devices with MIUI for POCO (for example, POCO F4 or POCO X3 Pro) The path to font settings may be different. Look for them in Settings → Additionally. → Special facilities → Type size.