How to Create Folders on Xiaomi: 5 Proven Ways to Create MIUI 14/15

Foldering on Xiaomi smartphones is a basic feature that helps organize apps, photos and files. However, many users face difficulties: somewhere the folder button is hidden in the depths of the menu, and somewhere the system behaves illogically after updates. In this article, we will discuss all the current ways to create folders on Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco devices with MIUI 14/15 firmware, including nuances for different versions of the shell.

MIUI is a feature of frequent interface changes after updates. What worked in MIUI 12 may not work in MIUI 15. We tested all methods on current firmware (May 2026 data) and highlighted generic solutions that work on 90% of the brand's devices. If you use custom firmware or beta HyperOS, some items may differ - we'll mention that too.

1. Creating folders on the desktop (for applications)

The most popular way is to group the app icons into folders on the home screen, and in MIUI, this is done intuitively, but there are hidden chips.

To create a folder:

1. Press and hold the icon of any application on the desktop.
2. Drag it to another icon and the folder will automatically form.
3. Release your finger to open the folder name menu.
4. Enter a name (such as “Social Networks” or “Games”) and click Ready.

MIUI 15 has the ability to change the color of the folder: click on the folder → Edit → select the color from the palette. You can also turn off the preview of the contents of the folder in the theme settings (Settings → Design → Animation of folders).

• 📱 For Redmi Note 12 and later: Supports the creation of nested folders (folder inside the folder.
• ⚙️ Display settings: in Settings → Desktop → The layout can select the number of rows/columns for icons, which affects the folder size.

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If the folder doesn't open after you've created it, try restarting your smartphone, which is due to a temporary MIUI GUI failure in 3% of cases.

2. folders in the file manager Mi File Manager

Xiaomi’s file manager allows you to create folders for organizing documents, downloads and media files, and there are two options: through the application interface and through the context menu.

Method 1: Through the "Create" button:

1. Open Files (the blue tag folder icon).
2. Go to the section where you want to create a folder (e.g., Internal Memory → Download).
3. Click on the three dots in the upper right corner → Create → Folder.
4. Enter the name (Latin or Cyrillic) and press OK.

Method 2: After a long press (does not work on all versions):

1. Click the empty space in the file manager.
2. In the menu that appears, select Create a folder.
3. Give me a name and save it.

Important: HyperOS (the new shell for Xiaomi 14 and later) has changed the logic of the file manager. To create a folder, you need to swipe down in free space, not long pressing, and you can assign color labels to folders (so far only in the Chinese version of firmware).

3.Folders in the photo gallery

Xiaomi Gallery automatically sorts photos by album (Screenshots, Downloads, WhatsApp), but custom folders here are created differently than in the file manager.

To create a folder for photos:

1. Open the Gallery app.
2. Click on the Album icon in the bottom menu.
3. Slip on + Create an album (in MIUI 15 the button is hidden under three dots in the upper right corner).
4. Choose a photo for the album or leave it blank.
5. Set the name and press Ready.

The key difference from the file manager is that the albums in the gallery are virtual folders. They don't create physical directories in the phone's memory, they just group links to files. If you delete a photo from the album, it stays in the main gallery. To delete the photo completely, you need to do it through Files or the gallery basket.

• 📁 Physical folders: If you want to create a real folder for a photo (for example, for a backup), use Mi File Manager and save the photo there through Share → Save in....
• 🔒 Hidden albums: in MIUI 14+ You can hide albums with a password. → Protection of confidentiality.
• 🔄 Sync with Mi Cloud: Albums created in the gallery are automatically synced to the cloud if the option is enabled in Settings → Xiaomi account → Mi Cloud → gallery.

Check out the MIUI version (Settings → About the phone)

Update the Gallery app in the Mi App Store

Clear the cache of the galleries (Settings → Applications → Gallery → Storage)

Turn off "Sort" in gallery settings if you need hand-held albums-->

4. Create folders via PC (ADB/MTP)

If you can not create a folder on your smartphone (for example, due to a failure) MIUI), You can do it through a computer. There are two reliable ways to do it. MTP-mode (like a flash drive) and through ADB-team.

Method 1: Through Windows/macOS Explorer:

1. Connect Xiaomi to your PC via USB-cable.
2. On your phone, select File Transfer (MTP) mode.
3. Open This Computer on PC → Find a Xiaomi Device
4. Go to the directory you want (for example, Internal storage → Pictures).
5. Right-click. → Create → folder.

Method 2: Through ADB (for system folders):

If you want to create a folder in a protected area (e.g. /data/local/tmp), you will need the developer rights and ADB rights to:

adb shell


mkdir /sdcard/NewFolder

To create a folder at the root of internal memory (requires root):

adb shell


su




mkdir /storage/emulated/0/MyPape

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ADB-Teams only work when the debugging is enabled USB (Settings → The phone. → Version. MIUI → 7 times to unlock the developer menu).

Warning: creating folders in system partitions (/system, /vendor) without root rights will lead to a Permission denied error. In MIUI, this is the responsibility of the SELinux policy, which cannot be circumvented without modifying the firmware.

5. Automatic folder creation (sort rules)

MIUI can automatically distribute files to folders based on rules, a feature hidden in the file manager settings and operated on an "if-the-something" basis.

To set up automatic sorting:

1. Open Files → Click on three points → Settings.
2. Select Smart Sort (in MIUI 15, the item is called Automatic Rules).
3. Press Add the rule.
4. For example, set conditions: 📥 File type: APK → Folder: Installers. 📅 Date of creation: over 30 days → Folder: Archive. 📎 Extension:.zip or.rar → Folder: Archives.

Save the rule and activate it.

Limitations of function:

• ⚠️ The rules only apply to new files, and existing ones will not be moved automatically.
• ⚠️ In HyperOS, smart sorting does not yet support moving files between internal memory and the SD-card.
• ⚠️ If the rule conflicts with another (for example, the file fits two conditions), the first one on the list will work.

6. Frequent errors and their solutions

When working with folders on Xiaomi, users face typical problems.-5 errors and ways of correcting them.

⚠️ Note: If it disappears when you reboot your folder, check your sync settings with Mi Cloud. In some cases, the cloud resets local changes if AutoRestore is enabled in Settings. → Xiaomi account → Mi Cloud → Synchronization settings.

If none of the methods worked, check the integrity of the file system through the Mi Check app (available from the Mi App Store).In rare cases, folder errors are associated with damage to the /data partition, which requires a factory reset.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions