How to turn off the pedometer on Xiaomi phone: a detailed guide

Xiaomi smartphone owners often face a situation where the built-in step counter continues to work even when it is completely unnecessary. This can happen on devices with a MIUI shell or the new HyperOS, where the activity tracker is integrated deep into system processes. The constant operation of motion sensors consumes battery power, and notifications of achievements can be annoying if you are not active right now.

There are several ways to disable this feature, either fully or partially: System settings limit applications' access to physical activity data, and hidden engineering menus allow for deeper control over sensors, and it's important to understand the difference between stopping a widget on a desktop and completely disabling data collection at the operating system level.

In this article, we will break down all available methods, from simple switches in the menu to use. ADB-You'll learn how to manage your smartphone's fitness features, hide unnecessary widgets, and optimize your device so it doesn't waste resources. The instructions are relevant to most modern models, including the Redmi Note series and the flagship Mi.

Disabling activity tracking in system settings

The first and most obvious step is to check basic privacy settings. The Android operating system on which Xiaomi firmware is based gives the user full control over the application’s access to sensors. If you deny system services access to physical activity data, the pedometer will stop collecting statistics.

To do this, go to Settings → Protection and Privacy → Permission Manager. You should find the item related to physical activity or “Physical activity data” and the list that opens will show all applications that are authorized to use the accelerometer and gyroscope to count steps.

Find Mi Fitness, Google Fit, or Health, and change the permission to “Disallow” to “Disallow” and stop data collection instantly, but remember that this will also disable functionality in other applications that rely on this data, such as in navigation devices or augmented reality games.

• 📱 Go to your device’s privacy settings.
• 🔒 Find the permissions management section for applications.
• 🚫 Disable access to motion sensors for activity trackers.
• ✅ Check if steps from widgets have disappeared after reboot.

⚠️ Warning: Disabling access to physical activity may cause the screen-lift function to malfunction or turn the screen, as they use the same sensors.

After the changes are made, the system may need to restart to apply new security policies, which is normal for MIUI to strictly monitor the integrity of system processes, and if the meter is still running after the reboot, it may be cached in the cloud or other system application.

Removing and Hiding Pedometer Widgets on the Desktop

Often, users are not concerned about the data collection process itself, but about a constantly flashing widget with numbers on the lock screen or the home screen. The visual presence of the pedometer can be removed without deep interference with the system. In the MIUI shell, widgets are often tied to the Security app or a separate Sport module.

To remove the widget from the main screen, just hold it with your finger and drag it to the removal area, usually indicated by the cross or basket at the top of the display. If the widget is on the lock screen, the path will be different: go to Settings → Lock screen and turn off the display of widgets or specifically step counter.

In some firmware versions, the pedometer widget is part of the theme. Changing the theme to a standard one or another that does not support such elements will also solve the problem. Redmi users may find that the widget is built into the Wallpaper Carousel, which can also be disabled in the lock screen settings.

If standard deletion doesn’t work, try clearing the widget’s own data. Go to Settings → Apps → All apps, find Sport or Mi Fitness and click Clear Data. This will reset the widget to factory settings and it may stop showing.

Setup of the Mi Fitness application and synchronization

At the heart of Xiaomi’s health ecosystem is the Mi Fitness app (formerly known as Mi Fit), which aggregates data from your smartphone and wearables, and if you want to stop your steps from syncing with the cloud or removing them from your general profile, you need to act through the app’s settings.

Open Mi Fitness, go to profile (Profile tab at the bottom right) and select Settings. Here you can find the option to Sync Health Data or similar, and disabling this feature will prevent data from being transferred to the manufacturer's servers, although the pedometer may continue to work locally.

Also in the app settings is a section called Device Management, where if a bracelet or watch is connected to the phone, turning it off or deleting it from the device list often stops background data collection as the phone ceases to act as the main tracker.

• ⌚ Open the Mi Fitness app on your smartphone.
• ⚙️ Go to the profile section and select the settings.
• 🌐 Turn off cloud-based health data synchronization.
• 🗑️ Remove connected wearables from the list.

Importantly, removing the Mi Fitness app completely can lead to system notification errors, as it is deeply integrated in HyperOS. It is better to use the “Disable” feature in application settings if available, instead of completely uninstalling it.

Use of engineering menus and hidden codes

For more advanced users, it is possible to disable sensors through the engineering menu, which requires caution, since changing the wrong parameters can lead to unstable operation of the smartphone.

Dial ##6484## (CIT) or #4636## (Testing) and find the section associated with the sensor or accelerometer in the menu that opens, where you can view current readings or, in some cases, stop the sensor survey.

However, in modern versions of MIUI, a direct "Switch off" button is often missing from this menu, and instead, you can use this section to diagnose: if the sensor shows activity when the phone is lying still, it may require calibration rather than shutdown.

⚠️ Warning: Do not change the settings in the engineering menu unless you are sure of their purpose.Resetting the accelerometer calibration can lead to incorrect positioning of the phone in space.

If you are using a MediaTek-based device, code ##3646633## can open an extended menu where you can control the sensor survey in the Hardware Testing → Sensor section.

Disconnecting through ADB for advanced users

The most radical and effective way is to use USB debugging and the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) tool, which allows you to freeze or completely remove the system package responsible for the pedometer, even without the superuser rights (Root), which requires a computer and a USB cable.

First, activate the developer mode on your phone. Go to Settings → About phone and quickly click on the build number seven times. Then, in the Advanced Settings or Additional menu, turn on Debugging on USB. Connect the phone to your PC and start the command line with ADB.

To turn off the pedometer, you need to find the name of the package, most often com.xiaomi.hm.health or the system component com.mi.health.

adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.mi.health

This command doesn't remove the app completely, but makes it inactive for the current user. The stepmer will stop working, the widgets will disappear, and the background processes will stop. To get it back to normal, use the adb shell pm enable com.mi.health command.

Using ADB gives you maximum control, but it requires care. A mistake in the name of the package can cause important system components to turn off. Always check the name of the package before entering a command.

Impact on autonomy and other functions

Turning off the pedometer is not just a matter of privacy, it's also a way to save energy. The motion sensors that are constantly being surveyed by the system consume the processor's resources. Although one accelerometer consumes a little bit of power, combined with other background processes, it affects the autonomy of the device.

When you turn off the activity tracker, you may notice a slight increase in battery life, especially for older smartphone models where battery capacity is already reduced, and you also release the RAM that was used in the synchronization process.

But there's a downside: some features, such as Adaptive Brightness (partially), Automatic Screen Turning, and smart alarms (waking up in REM sleep), may work less correctly or may not function at all, and the system loses its source of data about the device's movement.

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If you turned off the pedometer to save battery life, but the autonomy hasn't increased, check the background activity of other applications. Often, they are the main energy consumers, not the sensors.

It is important to weigh the pros and cons. If you do not use fitness trackers and navigation, disabling the pedometer would be a smart step to optimize the system, otherwise it is better to simply hide the widgets, leaving the functionality available.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

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Disabling the pedometer on Xiaomi is possible through permission settings, removing widgets or ADB-The choice of method depends on whether you want to simply hide the numbers or completely stop the data collection by the sensors.