How to hide the album in the gallery on Xiaomi smartphones: 5 working ways

Hiding personal photos and videos in the Xiaomi gallery is a challenge that almost every user faces. In the digital age, privacy is a priority, and standard security techniques (such as lock screen passwords) are not always enough. If you're looking for a way to hide an album from prying eyes - whether it's family photos, work documents or just personal memories - this article will help you get a glimpse of all the nuances.

Xiaomi has built in a few mechanisms to hide content in MIUI firmware, but not all of them are intuitive. Moreover, the functionality may differ depending on the version of the shell (MIUI 12, 13, 14 or HyperOS) and the smartphone model (Redmi Note 12, POCO X5, Xiaomi 13T, etc.).

Important: Hiding an album doesn't equal encryption. Even hidden files can be accessed through a file manager or when connected to a PC. If you need maximum protection, consider additional measures - for example, password archiving or cloud storage with two-factor authentication.

1. Hiding the album through the built-in Hidden Folder feature (MIUI Hidden Folder)

Since MIUI 12, Xiaomi has introduced the official Hidden Folder feature, which works on all modern models, including Redmi, POCO and Xiaomi’s flagship series, with the main advantage of system-level integration, which eliminates conflicts with updates.

To hide the album:

1. Open the standard Gallery app.
2. Select the album you want to hide and click on three dots (⋮) top-right.
3. In the drop-down menu, tap Hide album (or Hide album in English).
4. Confirm the action if necessary.

After that, the album will disappear from the main view of the gallery.

• 🔍 Go to the gallery. → Albums. → Hidden folders.
• 🔐 Enter your password (if it was set earlier) or confirm your fingerprint.
• 📂 Select the album you want and click Show the album to return to the main gallery.

⚠️ Note: If you reset your smartphone to factory settings, hidden albums will be deleted without recovery.

2.Use the "Private Folder" in MIUI 13/14 and HyperOS

In the newer firmware versions (MIUI 13+ and HyperOS), the album hiding feature has been redesigned and is now called Private Folder, a tool that not only hides files from outsiders, but also encrypts them, adding an additional layer of security.

Algorithm of action:

1. Open the smartphone settings.
2. Go to the Privacy section → Secure folder.
3. Activate the function by following the prompts on the screen (you will need to install) PIN-code).
4. Return to the Gallery, select the files or album you want to hide, and move to the Secure folder.

Features of Private Folder:

• 🔒 Files are encrypted and inaccessible without unlocking the folder.
• 📱 Supports biometric authentication (fingerprint, facial recognition).
• 🚫 Hidden files are not displayed in Explorer and are not indexed by the system.
• ⚠️ When resetting the folder is cleared – make a backup before resetting!

3. Hiding through File Manager: Rename the folder

If you don't like Xiaomi's built-in tools, you can hide the album manually through Explorer, which works on all versions of MIUI, but you need to be careful that the wrong actions can lead to file loss.

Instructions:

1. Open the Explorer app (or any other file manager, such as Solid Explorer).
2. Go to /storage/emulated/0/DCIM/ All gallery albums are stored here.
3. Find the folder with the desired album (for example, Camera, Screenshots or custom folder).
4. Rename it by adding a dot at the beginning of the title, such as Camera →.Camera Folders whose names begin with a dot are hidden by default in Android.
5. Reboot your smartphone so that the changes take effect.

To return an album to the gallery, simply delete the dot from the folder name.This method is suitable for temporary hiding, but does not provide protection from experienced users who know how to enable the display of hidden files.

⚠️ Note: Do not rename system folders (e.g. Android, MIUI Download or Download – this can disrupt the smartphone.

4. Third-party apps to hide albums: top-3 decision

If Xiaomi’s built-in features don’t suit you, you can use third-party apps that offer advanced features like encryption, deletion simulation, cloud redundancy, and even “false” passwords for disguise.

The best album hiding apps in 2026 are:

How to hide the album through GalleryVault:

1. Install the application and open it.
2. Create a master password (remember it!).
3. Click Import and select files or folders from the gallery.
4. Confirm the transfer – the originals will be removed from the standard gallery and placed in a secure storage.

5. Password Album Archive: A Reliable, But Time-consuming Way

If you need to not just hide it, but encrypt it, then password archiving is the best option, which is a method that is suitable for long-term storage of sensitive data and protection against hacking.

Instructions:

1. Install a file manager with archiving support, such as ZArchiver or RAR.
2. Open Explorer and find the folder with the album (usually in /DCIM/).
3. Select the folder, click Archive and select the ZIP or RAR format.
4. Set a password (use a combination of letters, numbers, and symbols) and confirm the creation of the archive.
5. Delete the original folder (optional) – now access to files is possible only through the archive with a password.

Advantages of the method:

• 🔐 High level of protection (AES-256 into RAR).
• 📦 The archive can be transferred to the PC or the cloud.
• 🛡️ It does not depend on the firmware of the smartphone.

Disadvantages:

• ⏳ Longer than any other way.
• 📉 Requires free space for the archive.
• 🔑 Password loss = loss.

💡

Use a password manager (like Bitwarden or KeePass) to remember your password from your archive. Never keep it in notes or SMS!

6. Hiding Albums Through Cloud Services: Google Photos and Mi Cloud

If you don't want to store sensitive files on your smartphone, you can transfer them to a cloud storage with limited access, which is convenient for backing up and syncing between devices.

How to hide the album in Google Photos:

1. Open the Google Photos app.
2. Pick an album, click it. ⋮ → Archive.
3. Archived albums are not displayed in the main tape, but remain available in the Archives section.
4. For additional protection, create a Shared Album for yourself and set access limits.

How to hide files in Mi Cloud:

1. Upload files to Mi Cloud via the Cloud app.
2. Create a folder with a “secret” name (e.g., “Reserve 2023”).
3. In the folder settings, enable Private Access (if available).
4. Remove the originals from your smartphone.

⚠️ Note: Cloud services may change privacy policies, such as Google Photos scans uploaded images for violations of the rules. For maximum privacy, use encrypted clouds like Proton Drive or Tresorit.

7 What if the hidden albums are visible again?

Sometimes users find that previously hidden albums suddenly appear in the gallery, which can happen for several reasons:

• 🔄 Update MIUI — After major updates, the settings are reset.
• 📱 Reset gallery cache - the application will re-index files.
• 🔌 PC Connection – Some file managers (like Windows Explorer) show hidden folders.
• 🔄 Cloud Sync – Google Photos or Mi Cloud can restore albums from backup.

Decisions:

• 🔧 Check the Hiding Settings in the Gallery → Albums. → Hidden folders.
• 📲 Update the Gallery app to the latest version.
• 🔒 If you use a Private Folder, make sure it hasn’t been unlocked accidentally.
• 🖥️ On PC, enable the display of hidden files (View) → Hidden elements in Windows) and check if a folder has appeared without a dot in the title.

💡

If the album became visible after the MIUI update, try rebooting your smartphone, which restores the cover-up with no additional action in 80% of cases.

Frequently asked questions