The keyboard on the Xiaomi phone does not work: what to do and how to fix it

The keyboard on Xiaomi's smartphone is one of the key elements of interaction with the device. When it suddenly stops working, it paralyzes the ability to type, search the Internet, or even enter a password. The problem can manifest itself in different ways: the keyboard does not open at all, freezes when typed, does not respond to touch or displays with errors. The causes range from software failures to hardware malfunctions, but in 90% of cases the problem can be solved independently.

In this article, we will analyze all possible scenarios, from basic actions like reboot to deep diagnostics of system files. Particular attention will be paid to Redmi models, POCO and Xiaomi 13/14 flagships, where you most often find specific bugs with a Gboard keyboard or a proprietary Mi Keyboard. If you encounter a keyboard that disappeared after updating MIUI, does not respond to swipes or gives an error "Unfortunately, the keyboard stopped" - here you will find step-by-step instructions.

Before you take your phone to a service center, try the methods in this article, many of which take less than a minute to work, but bring the device back to work, and let's start with the simplest solutions and gradually move on to the more complex ones.

1. Basic actions: reboot and check physical buttons

The first thing you need to do is to rule out temporary system failures, and often the keyboard will freeze due to overloading of RAM or application conflict.

• 🔄 Soft reboot: Press the power button for 5-10 seconds, then select "Reboot." This closes all background processes, including possible keyboard errors.
• 🔋 Forced reboot: If the screen doesn't respond, press the power button + volume up 15–20 It's good for Redmi Note. 10/11 new models.
• 🔍 Physical button check: sometimes the keyboard won't open because of a pressed Home or Back button (relevant to older models with mechanical buttons.

If after the reboot the keyboard worked, but the problem repeats - most likely, the fault of a particular application (most often messengers or games).

In the models with AMOLED-screens (for example, Xiaomi 13 Pro or POCO F5) Sometimes there is a bug when the keyboard is not displayed due to problems with the display driver, in which case it will help to disable the function "Always on the screen" (Settings) → Screen. → Screenshot).

2. Checking keyboard settings and resetting to factory parameters

If the keyboard opens but doesn't work properly (it doesn't type characters, changes language spontaneously, or slows down), the problem may lie in its settings.

1. Open Settings → System and device → Language and input → Current keyboard.
2. Make sure you select the main keyboard (usually the Gboard or Mi Keyboard).If a third-party keyboard (like SwiftKey) is active, try switching.
3. Click on the gear next to the keyboard name and reset its settings (Reset settings → Reset).

If the keyboard doesn’t open at all, try activating it manually:

• 📱 Through the notification bar: swipe down from the top edge of the screen, find the keyboard icon (usually in the form of the letter "A") and tap it.
• 🔧 Through Accessibility Settings: Go to Settings → Special facilities → Physical buttons and check if text input is disabled.

Check if the keyboard is included in the language settings

Remove the keyboard cache in the application settings

Disable VPN or proxy (they can block system services)

Try to enter the text in safe mode

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Some MIUI 14+ firmware has a bug where the keyboard doesn't work in specific applications (like Telegram or WhatsApp). To check this, open any other application (like Notes) and try typing. If it's where the keyboard works, the problem is compatibility with the specific software.

3. Clearing the cache and keyboard data

Accumulated cache or corrupted keyboard application data is one of the most common causes of failure.

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find your keyboard (Gboard, Mi Keyboard, or another).
3. Click Warehouse → Clear the cache and Clear the data.
4. Reboot the phone.

Attention! Clearing the data will reset all your personal keyboard settings (dictionary, themes, gestures) if the problem was in the corrupted files, after this procedure, the keyboard should work.

⚠️ Note: On some models POCO After the Mi Keyboard data is cleared, you may not be able to switch languages. To return it, reinstall the keyboard through Settings. → Language and input.

If you are using Gboard, you may need to reset your sync with your Google account after clearing the data.

• Open Gboard (find it in the list of apps).
• Go to Settings → Dictionary → Synchronization of the dictionary.
• Turn on the option and wait for the process to be completed.

4. Updating or reinstalling the keyboard

An outdated version of the keyboard or errors in its code can cause unstable work.

If the keyboard still doesn’t work after the update, try rolling back to the previous version. For Gboard, you can do this through Settings → Apps → Gboard → Remove updates. For Mi Keyboard, you will need to roll back the entire MIUI firmware (we’ll talk about this below).

On Xiaomi 12T and newer models, sometimes resetting keyboard settings through ADB helps.

adb shell pm clear com.google.android.inputmethod.latin

This command will completely reset the Gboard to factory settings, and it requires debugging and PC connectivity to execute it.

5. Checking in Safe Mode and Conflicting Applications

If the keyboard doesn't work only in certain conditions (like when you open a messenger or a game), it's the third-party app that's to blame.

1. Press the power button before the off menu appears.
2. Press and hold the option to Turn off (or turn off power) until a request to go to Safe Mode appears.
3. Confirm the transition. The phone will reboot with third-party apps disabled.

In Safe Mode, try opening the keyboard, if it works, there's a problem in one of the apps installed, to find the culprit.

• 🔍 Remove newly installed programs by checking the keyboard after each deletion.
• 🛡️ Pay special attention to applications with special features (Settings) → Special facilities → Installed services).
• 📱 Frequent culprits: Clean Master, DU Battery Saver, GO Keyboard, some launchers (e.g. Nova Launcher).

On Xiaomi models with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor (for example, Xiaomi 13 Ultra) in safe mode, gesture control may not work – use navigation buttons.

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If the keyboard doesn’t work in just one application (like Viber), try clearing the app’s cache or reinstalling it.

6. Resetting phone settings to factory

If none of the previous methods worked, the last resort is a complete reset.This will delete all data from the phone, so make a backup first:

1. Go to Settings → About Phone → Backup and Reset → Local Backup.
2. Create a copy to your memory card or to the Mi Cloud.
3. Backup and Reset → Resetting → Erase all data.
4. Enter your password (if required) and confirm the reset.

Once reset, the phone will reboot to its original state. Configure it as new and check the keyboard. If the problem is gone, it was the software or settings conflict. If the keyboard still doesn't work, it's a hardware malfunction (damaged plume, touchscreen or motherboard).

⚠️ Note: On phones with a bootloader unlocked, resetting settings may result in the device being locked (requires re-unlocking via the Mi Unlock Tool).

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Resetting is a last resort. Before you do that, be sure to check the keyboard in safe mode and try reinstalling the firmware through Fastboot.

7. Hardware malfunctions: when to carry in the service

If the software methods didn't work, the problem is probably hardware.

• 📱 The keyboard doesn’t work anywhere (even after resetting the settings).
• 🔧 The screen reacts to touch unstable (self-pressing, "ghost" swipes).
• 💥 The phone fell or was exposed to moisture.
• 🔌 The keyboard only works in a certain part of the screen (for example, the characters in the top row are not pressed).

In these cases, the following breakdowns are possible:

The cost of repair depends on the model:

• Redmi Note 10/11: touchscreen — 3 000–5 000 ₽.
• Xiaomi 12/13: display-module replacement — 8 000–15 000 ₽.
• POCO F3/4: plume-break — 2 000–4 000 ₽.

If the phone is warranty, do not disassemble it yourself - contact the authorized service center Xiaomi. mi.com/ru/service/center.

FAQ: Frequent questions about a broken keyboard on Xiaomi