How to permanently remove the Emoji Keyboard on Xiaomi smartphones: 3 proven methods

Xiaomi’s built-in Emoji Keyboard is often installed by default on the brand’s smartphones, but not everyone likes it.Some complain about an uncomfortable interface, some complain about automatic emoji swapping, and some simply prefer third-party solutions like Gboard or SwiftKey. The problem is that standard methods to remove this keyboard is not so easy: in MIUI it is often hidden in system applications and does not have a “Delete” button.

If you're facing this problem, don't rush to reset your phone to factory settings. In this article, we'll discuss three working ways to uninstall the Emoji Keyboard, from simple shutdown to complete uninstallation via ADB. All methods have been tested on MIUI 14 and MIUI 15, but they'll work for older versions as well. The main thing is to follow the instructions carefully so you don't disrupt the system.

Before you start, make sure you have a backup of your important data, and while the risk of losing information is minimal, you should be safe, and check if the Emoji Keyboard is used as the default keyboard, in which case turning it off can cause problems with text input.

1. Method: Disabling Emoji Keyboard in Settings

The easiest and safest way to do this is to deactivate the keyboard through the settings menu, which won't remove it completely, but will make it unusable, and is suitable for those who don't want to risk the stability of the system.

To disable the Emoji Keyboard:

1. Open Settings → System and device → Language and input.
2. Slip on the Keyboard (or Keyboard Management in some versions of MIUI).
3. Find the Emoji Keyboard (may be called the Xiaomi Emoji Keyboard or MiuiEmojiKeyboard).
4. Switch the slider to the off position. or press Disconnect.

After that, the keyboard will disappear from the list of active input methods, but it will remain in the system and can be activated again after the MIUI update. To avoid this, move to the next method.

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If there is no Emoji Keyboard in the keyboard list, try typing any text in the settings search bar – sometimes system apps are hidden and only appear when you’re actively using them.

2. Method: Removal through application settings

In some versions of MIUI (especially on POCO and Redmi Note), the Emoji Keyboard can be removed as a regular app, but this method does not work on all devices, it all depends on Xiaomi's policy on system components.

Try to do the following:

• 📱 Open the Settings. → Annexes → Application management.
• 🔍 In the search bar, type Emoji or the emoji keyboard.
• 🗑️ If the name appears next to the button Remove (not "Disable"), tap it.
• ⚠️ Confirm the action – the system can warn about possible consequences.

If there is no delete button, then the keyboard is protected as a system application, in which case only the third way will help - uninstall via ADB.

Method 3: Complete removal via ADB (for advanced)

If the first two methods don’t work, the radical way is to uninstall the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) – this requires connecting the smartphone to the computer, but is guaranteed to remove the keyboard permanently.

This will require:

• 💻 Computer with installed ADB-driver.
• 📱 Xiaomi smartphone with enabled debugging USB (How to turn it on - see below).
• 🔌 USB-cable (preferably original).

Step-by-step:

1. Turn on USB debugging: Go to Settings → About Phone. Tap 7 times on MIUI until the notification "You're a developer" appears. Return to Settings → Additional → Developer and activate Debugging via USB.

Connect your phone to your PC

Open the command line (Windows)

ADB

Enter a command to check the connection

adb devices

The name of your device should appear.

Remove the Emoji Keyboard

adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.sohu.inputmethod.emoji.xiaomi

com.miui.emojikeyboard

Once the command is complete, the keyboard will be completely removed.Reboot the phone so that the changes take effect.

Debugging is on. USB|Installed ADB-PC-driver|Smartphone connected with original cable|Backup of important data is made|The name of the Emoji Keyboard package is checked-->

Possible problems and solutions

It can be difficult to remove the Emoji Keyboard, and let's look at the most common ones and how to fix them.

If after deleting you notice a slowdown or input error, try resetting the keyboard settings:

1. Go to Settings → System and device → Resetting.
2. Select Reset App Settings (not a full reset!).
3. Confirm the action and restart the phone.

To install a new keyboard:

1. Download it from Google Play.
2. Go to Settings → System and Device → Language and Input → Keyboard.
3. Activate the new keyboard and set it by default.

If you use POCO Launcher or MIUI without Google services, some keyboards may not work, in which case we recommend Simple Keyboard, a lightweight application with no unnecessary features.

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Before installing a new keyboard, check reviews about its compatibility with your Xiaomi model. For example, on the Redmi Note 12, some keyboards may conflict with MIUI signature gestures.

6 How to Return the Emoji Keyboard if Something Goes Wrong

If you have problems after removal or just changed your mind, you can restore the keyboard in two ways:

Method 1: Through resetting application settings

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Click on the three dots in the upper right corner and select Show System.
3. Find the Emoji Keyboard in the list and tap Enable.

Method 2: Reinstallation via ADB

If the keyboard has been removed completely, restore it with the command:

adb shell cmd package install-existing com.sohu.inputmethod.emoji.xiaomi

Then restart the phone. The keyboard will return to its original state, but all of its settings will reset.

FAQ: Frequent questions about removing Emoji Keyboard

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If you use Xiaomi.eu or custom firmware, the removal process may be different, and in such cases, it is better to consult your firmware documentation or forums like 4PDA.