How to transfer contacts from Android to Xiaomi: all ways

Changing your smartphone is always about wanting to use a new device as quickly as possible without losing your familiar data. The most critical information for most users is the phone book, the loss of which can be a disaster, especially if it has hundreds of important numbers.

Owners of Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco devices have a significant advantage due to built-in optimization tools that make it much easier to migrate from any other Android smartphone.

In this article, we will take a look at all the existing methods of transfer, from using a specialized application Mi Mover to classic synchronization through Google cloud services, you will learn to avoid common errors and duplication of records, while maintaining the structure of your contacts.

Using the Mi Mover app for quick migration

The most efficient and quickest way Xiaomi engineers recommend is to use the Mi Mover app, which is designed specifically to allow users to move to a new platform without losing data and having to understand complex technical settings.

The process starts with installing the app on both devices. On the new Xiaomi smartphone, it is already preinstalled in the Tools folder, and on the old phone it must be downloaded from Google Play or GetApps. After launching on both devices, you need to select the role of the device: “I am the recipient” on the new one and “I am the sender” on the old one.

Wi-Fi Direct is used to connect devices, which provides high data transfer speeds without mobile traffic. QR-In the case of code or manual network selection, the system will suggest selecting data types to transfer.

⚠️ Warning: Make sure the screens of both smartphones do not go out during the process.Stop connection during the copying phase of contacts can lead to partial data loss or damage to the number database.

In the list of available data, be sure to mark "Contacts." The app allows you to select specific groups or individual numbers if you do not need a full copy of the phone book. This is especially useful if you want to clear the list of old or unnecessary entries before transferring.

Once the process is complete, the new device will report the number of records transferred, automatically recognizes the format and distributes the numbers to the appropriate fields, saving even additional data such as email addresses and birthdays.

Syncing through Google Account: Cloud Method

Google’s ecosystem provides one of the most reliable ways to store data, which is independent of the phone model or manufacturer. If your old Android smartphone has a Google account login, your contacts are likely already saved in the cloud.

To check this, open the settings on your old device, go to Accounts and Sync (or Users and Accounts) and select your Google account. Make sure the switch opposite Contacts is activated and lit in blue.

If sync has been enabled before, all your numbers are already on Google Contacts servers.You don't have to do anything on your old phone except wait for the download to complete if it's still going, which ensures that the copy of the data is up to date.

On the new Xiaomi smartphone, when you first start up or through the settings menu, you need to add the same Google account. After entering your login and password, the system will prompt you to choose which data to sync. Leave a tick opposite the Contacts included.

It is important to understand that downloading can take some time depending on the number of records and the speed of the Internet connection. In the background, the phone will pull up the data, and it will appear in the phone book automatically.

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If contacts do not appear immediately after sync, open the Contacts app, click on three dots in the corner and select Update or Sync Now.

The advantage of this method is that in the future, when you change your phone, you just need to log in to your account, and the entire phone book will be restored automatically, which eliminates the need to perform complex manipulations with cables or applications every time.

Transfer of contacts via SIM-card: the classic version

Despite the development of cloud technologies, the method of copying SIM-The card remains relevant, especially if you don't have Wi-Fi access or prefer to store data locally, and it works on even the simplest push-button phones.

First, you need to export your contacts to SIM-Go to the Contacts app, open the control menu (usually three points or lines) and select Import/Export. SIM-map".

The system will alert you to the limitations. SIM-The card has limited memory and supports only the basic fields: name and one phone number. All additional data, such as avatars, addresses and second numbers, will be lost.

After completing the export on the old phone, remove SIM-map and paste it into the new Xiaomi smartphone. Next, open the Contacts app on the new device, go to the settings and select Import with SIM-map".

The system will suggest you choose an account to which the numbers will be saved, and it is critical to choose a Google account or a phone memory, but not the phone itself. SIM-map to free up space on the chip and save full versions of contacts with additional fields.

Import via VCF file: working with archives

VCF (vCard) is the industry standard for sharing contact information, ideal if you want to back up your entire phone book as a single file and save it to your computer or flash drive.

On the old device, go to the contacts app, select a menu, and click Export to file.vcf (or Export to Storage).The system will create a file, commonly called contacts.vcf or with a date, and save it to internal memory.

The resulting file must be transferred to the new Xiaomi smartphone, which can be done via Bluetooth, instant messengers (Telegram, WhatsApp), email or simply by flipping over the phone. USB-cable to the computer and then to the new phone.

When the file is on the new device, just click on it. Android automatically recognizes the format and prompts you to open it using the Contacts or Phone app. Once confirmed, the import process will begin.

⚠️ Note: When importing a large file VCF (for example, 2000+ The process can take several minutes. Do not open other heavy applications at this point, so as not to overload RAM.

The good thing about this is that it retains the entire data structure, including the photo and grouping, if the file format supports it, and you can easily send a VCF file to another person to quickly share your contact list.

Solving Duplicate Contact Problems

A common problem after migrating from one Android to another, especially when using multiple methods at once, is the appearance of duplicates. The same person can display twice or three times with or without different numbers.

Xiaomi smartphones have a built-in tool to solve this problem: Open the Contacts app, click on the menu (three dots) and find Contacts Organization or Contact Management.

In this section, select the "Combine Repeats" function, and the system will analyze the phone book, find the entries with the same names or numbers, and suggest combining them into one card, which allows you to clean the list and make it neat.

Also available in this menu is the function of removing empty contacts. Often, when synchronized with various messengers (Viber, WhatsApp, Telegram), empty records are created that only take up space, the tool will automatically find and delete them.

Cleaning the phone book regularly not only improves the visual appearance of the list, but also speeds up the search for the right subscriber, and it is recommended to carry out this procedure immediately after transferring the data to a new phone.

Setting up display and sorting on Xiaomi

Once you successfully transfer contacts, it is important to customize them to your habits, and the MIUI or HyperOS shell allows you to flexibly manage how the call list in the phone book looks.

Go to the contact settings and find the "Sort" section, where you can choose the order by name or by surname. Russian-speaking users often prefer sorting by name, whereas in Western countries, you can sort by surname.

You can also customize the display format, so you can choose which to show first, first or last name, and that affects how the entries in the recent call list and address book will look.

You have to pay special attention to filtering, you can choose which accounts you want to show contacts from in your display settings, and if you don't want to see contacts from your corporate Exchange account or your old Skype, you can hide them without physically deleting them.

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Properly configuring sorting and filtering contacts immediately after the transfer will save you time searching for numbers in the future and eliminate visual noise.

Also check the settings for displaying the photo. Make sure the Show Photo switch is activated so you can visually identify the caller, not just read the name.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)