How to restore an app on Xiaomi: from standard methods to hidden MIUI features

You've removed an important application on Xiaomi, Redmi or POCO -- and now you can't find it? The situation is familiar to many: after cleaning the system or random tap, the right software disappears, and the standard installation through Google Play doesn't always work. In this article, we'll look at 5 proven recovery methods, including hidden MIUI features, backups and even commands for power users.

Xiaomi’s smartphone features a customized MIUI shell that sometimes blocks “extra” apps or hides them from the menu. We’ll show you how to return the software without losing data if it’s uninstalled, disabled, or simply “hidden” by the system. And what to do if the application doesn’t appear in the Play Market after it’s deleted (a common problem with preinstalled services like Mi Browser or Mi Video).

1. Check if the application has actually been removed

Before you restore, make sure that the app isn't just disabled or hidden. MIUI has an Application Archive feature that removes them from the menu but leaves them on the system.

• 🔍 Open the Settings. → Annexes → Application management.
• 📱 Scroll down the list and click Show All Apps (or System Processes).
• 🔄 If the desired application is in the list, but marked as “Disabled” – tap it and select Enable.

If the app isn't even here, it's been completely removed. Go to the following ways.

2.Restore via Google Play (if the app was installed from there)

The easiest way is to re-install from Google Play, but there are some nuances.

1. Open the Play Market and enter the name of the app in search.
2. If the installation button is active, press it. If it is replaced by Installed or Updated, but the application is not on the menu, it is hidden by the system (see section 1).
3. Pre-installed apps (such as Mi Home or Mi Fit) may need to be upgraded through the Play Market, even if they have been removed.

Problem: Some Xiaomi system applications (such as Security or Cleaner) don’t show up in the Play Market, and then use the methods in the following sections.

💡

If the app is not in the Play Market, try to access it through the browser via a direct link. For example, for Mi Browser, type in the address bar: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mi.globalbrowser

3. Use of a backup copy of MIUI

MIUI automatically backs up applications when they are reset or updated to recover data:

• 📲 Go to Settings. → The phone. → Backup and reset → Local backups.
• 🔄 Select the last copy (date when the application was still installed).
• 📦 Click Restore and tick the desired application (or select Selective Restore).

Important: This method only works if the backup was created before the application was deleted, and if there are no copies, move on to the next method.

⚠️ Warning: Restore from backup may overwrite current system settings, and it is recommended to save important data (contacts) in advance, SMS, files in the cloud or on PC.

Installation APK-hand-file

If the application has been removed completely, but you know its exact name, you can download and install it. APK-This is a manual file. This is a method that works for you:

• 📱 Pre-installed Xiaomi apps (e.g. Mi Calculator, Mi Music).
• 🌐 Apps removed from the Play Market (e.g. older versions of Mi Fit).
• 🔧 System utilities that are not recognized as "installed».

Instructions:

1. Download APK from a trusted source (such as APKCombo or APKMirror). For system applications, look for versions marked for MIUI.
2. Transfer the file to your phone (for example, via Telegram or Explorer).
3. Open the file and allow installation from unknown sources (Settings → Applications → Special Access → Install Unknown Applications).
4. Start the installation and wait until it is completed.

⚠️ Attention: installation APK For system applications, Xiaomi is better off using files from Xiaomi.EU forums or from official mirrors or sites with good reputations. 4PDA.

Downloaded from official source |Verified by antivirus |Version compatible with MIUI|Installation permission enabled-->

5. Recovery through ADB (for power users)

If an application has been uninstalled as a system (e.g., via adb uninstall), it can only be returned using the command line.

• 🖥️ Computers with installed ADB and Fastboot.
• 🔌 Included debugging by USB on the phone (Settings) → The phone. → Version. MIUI — Tap 7 times, then additionally → For developers → Debugging by USB).
• 📄 Knowledge of the application package name (you can find on sites like Play Market in the address bar after id)=).

Recovery teams:

adb shell


pm install-existing --user 0 com.example.app

Where com.example.app is the name of the packet (e.g. com.miui.calculator for calculator).

If the command doesn’t work, try reinstalling APK via ADB:

adb install path/to/app.apk

6. Resetting the phone to factory settings (extreme case)

If none of the methods worked, and the application is critical (e.g. Mi Account or Security), there is a complete reset, which will return all the pre-installed applications, but delete user data.

How to reset:

1. Make a backup copy of important data (photos, contacts, messages).
2. Go to Settings → About Phone → Backup and Reset → Reset settings.
3. Choose to erase all data and confirm the action.
4. After the reboot, the phone will return to the “out of the box” state with all standard apps.

⚠️ Attention: Reset deletes: - All installed applications and their data. - Accounts (except Mi Account if the phone is tied). - Wi-Fi settings, Bluetooth, fingerprints. - Files in internal memory (photos, videos, documents). SD-map and copy the data to the PC.

💡

Factory reset is the last chance to bring back system applications, and only use it if other methods have failed, as the process is irreversible.

FAQ: Frequent questions about restoring apps on Xiaomi