How to link a photo to a contact on Xiaomi: 5 working ways for MIUI

Xiaomi’s current MIUI-based smartphones offer convenient tools for personalizing contacts — including the ability to add photos — that not only make a phone book visually appealing, but also help quickly identify the caller. However, many users have difficulty attaching an image: somewhere the button is hidden in the depths of the menu, and somewhere the system requires synchronization with the account.

In this article, we will discuss all the current ways to add photos to contacts on Xiaomi, Redmi, POCO and Black Shark devices – from standard methods through the Contacts app to workarounds for older versions of MIUI. Particular attention will be paid to the nuances of synchronization with Google Contacts and Mi Account, as well as solving typical errors like “no photo is saved” or “image is cropped incorrectly”.

1. Standard method: through the "Contacts" appendix

The most obvious method is to edit the contact directly in the standard app, which works on all Xiaomi devices with MIUI 12 and later, including the Redmi Note 12, POCO F5 and Xiaomi 13 models.

Instructions:

• 📱 Open the Contacts app (an icon with a person’s silhouette on a green background).
• 🔍 Find the contact you want in the list or use the search bar at the top.
• ✏️ Click on the contact, then tap the pencil icon ("Edit") in the upper right corner.
• 🖼️ Touch the camera icon next to the name field (or the words "Add photo").
• 📸 Select the source: 📷 Take a picture – activates the camera for a new photo; 🖼️ Gallery – allows you to select an existing image; 🎨 Avatar – offers icon templates (on some models).
• ✅ Confirm the changes with the "Save" button".

If there is no edit button, check if the contact is read-only (e.g., synced to WhatsApp or a corporate account) and then you need to create a local copy.

Photo must be in JPG/PNG|Resolution of at least 300×300 pixels |Contact not locked in MIUI|Free at least 100 MB of memory-->

2. Add photos via Google Contacts

If you use Google sync, changes to contacts will automatically apply across all devices, a method that is particularly convenient for users who often switch between smartphones of different brands.

Step-by-step:

1. Open your browser on your PC or phone and go to contacts.google.com.
2. Sign in with your Google account (the same as on your smartphone).
3. Find the contact you need in the list and click on it.
4. Click on the camera icon in the upper left corner of the contact card.
5. Upload a photo from your device or take a new picture (if you use the mobile version of the site).
6. Save the changes – sync with the phone will take up to 5 minutes.

On Xiaomi smartphone, make sure that sync is enabled: Settings → Accounts and sync → Google → Contacts.

💡

If the photo doesn’t show up after synchronization, try manually updating contacts: open the Contacts app → swipe down for updates.

3.Use Mi Account for cloud synchronization

Mi Account users can save contacts in the company’s cloud, which is useful if you don’t want to depend on Google or use multiple Xiaomi devices.

How to link photos via Mi Cloud:

• 🌐 Go to i.mi.com and log in.
• 📇 Go to the "Contact" section".
• 🔍 Find the right contact and open it.
• 🖼️ Click on the camera icon next to the name.
• 📤 Download the photo from your computer (maximum size – 5 MB).
• 💾 Save the changes.

On your phone, check your sync settings: Settings → Accounts and Sync → Mi Account → Contacts.

Google Contacts |Mi Account |Local Storage |Other service |Not sync-->

4. Solve problems: photo is not saved or cropped

A common complaint of Xiaomi users is that they can't save a photo or crop it incorrectly. Here are the typical reasons and solutions:

A critical feature of MIUI is that if a contact is synchronized with WhatsApp or Viber, its photo will be replaced with an avatar from the messenger. To fix this, turn off the display of contacts from social networks in the settings of the Contacts app.

5. Alternative methods: through file manager and ADB

For advanced users, there are non-obvious ways to add photos to contacts that can help in difficult cases.

Method 1: Through a File Manager

Contact photos are stored in the /data/data/com.android.providers.contacts/files/ folder, but access to them requires root rights.

1. Copy the photo into a folder DCIM/.thumbnails name-name contact_{ID}.jpg (where ID — contact).
2. Reboot the phone.

Method 2: ADB (for technical professionals):

adb shell content insert --uri content://com.android.contacts/raw_contacts --bind name: "Contact name"


adb shell content insert --uri content://com.android.contacts/data --bind raw_contact_id:1 --bind mime_type:"vnd.android.cursor.item/photo" --bind data15:"/path/to/photo.jpg"

⚠️ Attention: use ADB This method is recommended only for reconnection after resetting.

6.Photo optimization for contacts: sizes and formats

To ensure that the photo is clearly displayed and without distortion, follow the format recommendations:

• 📏 Permission: minimum 300×300 pixels, optimally — 720×720.
• 🖼️ Format: JPEG or PNG (transparently).
• 🎨 Color gamut: avoid dark backgrounds - they do not show the name.
• 👤 Content: The face must occupy at least 60% of the frame for correct recognition.

To crop the photo directly on your phone, use the built-in editor in the Gallery app: Open photo → Edit → Trimming → 1:1 (square).

💡

MIUI automatically compresses contact photos to 100KB. If the original weighs more, the quality may deteriorate.

7. Transfer photos of contacts when changing the phone

When you switch to a new Xiaomi smartphone, photos of contacts may not automatically transfer. Here’s how to save them:

Method 1: Using MIUI backup

• 📱 On an old phone: Settings → The phone. → Backup.
• 💾 Select Contacts and Create a Backup.
• 📲 On a new phone: restore the backup with Mi Account.

Method 2: Export to the VCF-file

• 📇 Open "Contacts" → "More" (three dots) → "Imports/Exports".
• 📤 Export contacts to.vcf file to memory card.
• 📥 Transfer the file to a new phone and import it.

⚠️ Attention: when exporting to VCF Contact photos are not always saved. Use synchronization with Google or Mi Cloud to ensure transfer.

FAQ: Frequent questions about photos in Xiaomi contacts