Why monitor screen time on your smartphone?
Screen time is not just a number showing how many hours you spent on your phone, it’s a self-monitoring tool that helps you identify digital habits that affect productivity, sleep, and even eye health. For example, if you notice that you spend 5 hours a day on social media, it's a signal to reconsider your routine. 9T shelled MIUI There are built-in monitoring tools, but they are hidden deeper than on pure Android.
The Redmi 9T (codenamed lime) is that it was released in 2021 with MIUI 12 on board, and later received updates to MIUI 14. Depending on the firmware version, the stats interface may differ — some data is collected automatically, some require manual activation, and some users encounter a bug when the screen time is reset after rebooting.
In this article you will find:
- 🔍 3 Official Ways to Check Screen Time (Including Hidden Settings)
- 📊 Comparison of data accuracy between MIUI Digital Wellbeing and
- ⚙️ Instructions for different versions of firmware (MIUI 12–14)
- ⚠️ Typical errors and how to avoid them (for example, why statistics are zeroed out)
Method 1: Using the built-in MIUI statistics (the fastest)
The easiest method is to use the built-in MIUI tool, which collects data about the screen activity automatically, but it has a limitation: the statistics are stored only for the last 7 days and reset when you change your Mi Account.
To find this data:
- Open the settings (cog icon).
- Go to the Battery and Performance section.
- Tap on Battery use → Usage statistics.
- At the top of the screen you will see a graph of Screen time broken down by day.
If you have a MIUI 14, the path may be different.
Settings → Battery → Graphic icon (upper right corner) → Screen time
Is data collection included in Settings → Privacy → Special permissions → Usage statistics
Is the firmware updated to the latest version (bugs with zero statistics fixed in MIUI 13.5+)
Is your Mi Account connected (without it, your data may not be saved)
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⚠️ Note: If you use the Second Space (Dual Desktop) mode, the statistics will be shown separately for each profile. To see the general data, you first need to combine the spaces into Settings. → Special facilities → Second space.
Method 2: Digital Wellbeing (Google)
If the MIUI statistics you have are inaccurate or not detailed enough, you can use Google’s Digital Wellbeing service, which provides a deeper analysis of how many apps you’ve used, how many screens you’ve unlocked, and even how many weeks you’ve been compared to before.
How to turn on and configure:
- Open Settings → Applications → Digital Wellbeing and Parental Controls.
- If the service is disabled, tap Show Use Data and confirm permissions.
- In the main Digital Wellbeing menu, select the Control Panel.
- It shows the screen time for today, as well as a schedule for days.
Advantages of this method:
- 📅 History up to 30 days (vs 7 days) MIUI).
- 🔄 The ability to set limits on apps (for example, 1 hour per day for TikTok).
- 🛌 Sleep Time Mode that automatically turns your phone into black and white.
| Criteria | MIUI statistics | Digital Wellbeing |
|---|
| Maximum period of data storage | 7 days | 30 days |
| Details by annex | Only tops.-3 | Complete list |
| Limits on use | No. | Yes. |
| It works without the internet. | Yes. | Yes (but syncing with a Google account requires a network) |
Built-in MIUI stats|Digital Wellbeing|Application side (e.g. ActionDash)|Not tracking-->
⚠️ Note: Some of the Redmi firmware 9T (Digital Wellbeing may not be available, in which case it can be installed separately from Google Play as the Wellbeing (Beta) app. However, Google Play Services needs the latest version to work properly.
Method 3: The App for Advanced Analytics
If you want even deeper analytics, like reporting on app categories (social media, games, work) or exporting data to Excel, you should look at third-party tools that are suitable for users who want to keep long-term statistics or analyze trends.
Top.-3 supplant 9T:
- 📊 ActionDash – visualizes data in the form of graphs, shows “peak” usage hours, integrates with Google Fit to monitor activity.
- 🕒 StayFree – allows you to set goals for reducing screen time and send notifications when the limit is exceeded.
- 📈 QualityTime – offers the function of “Digital detox” with blocking distracting applications for a given period.
How to set up ActionDash (Step-by-step):
- Install the app from Google Play.
- When you first start, grant permission to access usage statistics (a pop-up will redirect you to settings).
- Enable Special Access to Settings → Applications → ActionDash → Additional → Access to Usage Statistics.
- Return to the app and wait for the data to sync (it can take up to 5 minutes).
Why can third-party applications display data other than MIUI? This is because MIUI and Google use different scoring algorithms. For example, MIUI may not take into account time spent in Developer Mode or when connecting to a PC via ADB. Party applications often sum up all sessions, including background activity (e.g. playing music with the screen off). --> The main disadvantage of third-party decisions is that they require constant work in the background, which can increase battery consumption by 5-10%. To minimize the impact of the application
🔋 Turn off autosynchronization in the application settings. 📵 Limit background activity through Settings → Annexes → [Title of the annex] → Battery → Background activity. 🗑️ Clean the app cache once a week. What if screen time isn't displayed or reset? Zero statistics is one of the most common problems on Redmi. 9T. Most often, it occurs for three reasons: Resetting the system cache (for example, after cleaning through Settings). → Memory. → Clean up. Update. MIUI No backup. Disabled statistics collection in privacy settings. Solutions for each of the situations: Problem Reason How to fix Statistics is zeroed after rebooting Bugs in MIUI 12-13 Update the firmware to MIUI 13.5+ or use Digital Wellbeing No data for past days Collect statistics disabled Include in Settings → Confidentiality → Special permits → Usage statistics Shows only 0 minutes Conflict with battery saving app Add Digital Wellbeing to auto optimization exceptions If the problem persists, try resetting statistics: Settings → Annexes → Application management → Three dots (menu) → How to export screen time data for analysis? If you are a productivity diary or want to analyze smartphone usage trends, it is useful to export the statistics in a convenient format. Unfortunately, MIUI It doesn't provide an integrated export function, but there are workarounds. 1: Through Digital Wellbeing (for Google accounts) Open Digital Wellbeing → Control panel. Put the gear icon in the top right corner. Select Data Export. → Create a file. Data will be saved in Downloads in.json format (you can open in Excel via a converter). 2: With help. ADB (For advanced users, if you need raw data from the system, you can extract it through ADB: adb shell dumpsys usagestats --check-current adb shell dumpsys usagestats --sync These commands will upload the statistics to the console. For convenience, redirect the output to the file: adb shell dumpsys usagestats > usage_stats.txt 💡Exports through ADB requires the developer mode to be enabled and the connection to PC. It's easier for beginners to use Digital Wellbeing or third-party apps with an export feature (like ActionDash). 9T Time tracking is just the first step, and to really reduce your smartphone dependency, use these techniques: 🌙 Night mode: Turn on Dark theme and blue light filter (Settings) → Screen. → Reading mode after 21:00, which will reduce the strain on the eyes and help you fall asleep faster. ⏰ App limits: In Digital Wellbeing, set a daily limit on social media and games (e.g., 1 hour on Instagram. 📵 Phone-free zones: Use the Do Not Disturb feature (Settings) → Sound. → Do not disturb) while working or sleeping. Set up automatic on schedule. 🔄 Digital detox: Once a week, have a "short day" -- for example, leave your phone in another room for 2-3 hours. You can use gamification to motivate you. Apps like Forest offer to plant virtual trees in the time you spend without your phone. The longer you don't use a device, the more your virtual forest grows. - Limits at Digital Wellbeing|Don't disturb mode"|Appendix (Forest, StayFree)|Self-control without tools--> ⚠️ Attention: On Redmi 9T firmware MIUI 13 Do Not Disturb may conflict with notifications from system applications (e.g., Security). Before setting up, check if important alerts (calls) are missing, SMS). FAQ: Frequent questions about screen time on Xiaomi Redmi 9T Can you look at screen time from last month? Standard statistics. MIUI — No, the data is only stored for 7 days. In Digital Wellbeing, the story is available for up to 30 days. For a longer period, you need third-party applications (such as ActionDash with a premium subscription) or manually export data through a premium subscription. ADB. Why screen time in the MIUI And digital wellbeing is different? It's due to different algorithms: MIUI It only takes active time with the screen on. Digital Wellbeing can summarize background activity (e.g., playing music with the screen off). The difference is usually 10-20%. For accuracy, focus on Digital Wellbeing. How do you reset screen time statistics? There are two ways: MIUI: Settings → Battery. → Usage statistics → Reset data. Through Digital Wellbeing: Settings (cogs) → Reset the data. Note that the reset will delete the entire story without the possibility of recovery. 9T? This is the case with: Parental control in MIUI: Settings → Parental controls (requires child account binding); Google Family Link: allows you to set limits and block apps remotely; App side: Kids Place or Norton Family; Redmi 9T For full control, you have to turn off Second Space, otherwise the statistics will be broken down into profiles. Does screen time affect battery life? Indirectly, yes. The longer the screen lasts (especially at high brightness), the faster the battery runs out. 9T With a capacity of 6000 mAh when you are actively using (for example, 6-7 hours of screen per day), the battery is set down in 12-14 hours. To extend the time: Reduce the brightness of the screen to 50-60%. Turn on Adaptive brightness in the display settings. Use Dark Theme (on the screen). AMOLED-The screen saves up to 15% of the charge).