How to save and transfer contacts when replacing your phone with Xiaomi

Changing your smartphone is always a bit stressful, especially when you risk losing important information. Xiaomi, Redmi and Poco device owners often wonder how to move their phonebook to a new device as quickly and safely as possible. Fortunately, the Android ecosystem and the proprietary shell MIUI (or HyperOS) offer a variety of built-in tools to solve this problem.

In this article, we will take a look at all the available methods of data migration, you will learn how to use cloud storage, on-premises tools and even good old-fashioned tools. SIM-The main thing is to take your time and choose the method that best suits your situation and the condition of the old phone.

Before taking action, you need to make sure both devices have sufficient battery power.Backup is a process that does not tolerate sudden power outages, as this can damage the contact database files.

Synchronization through Google account

The most reliable and modern way to save numbers is by linking them to a Google account. By default, many smartphones offer to save new records in the cloud, but if you are used to keeping them in your phone’s memory, the process will require preliminary preparation.

You need to open the Contacts app on your old device and check where the numbers are stored. If they are stored locally, you need to export them. Go to the app settings and find Import/Export Contacts. Select Export to Google or Sync Now.

Once the data is gone to the cloud, the process on the new Xiaomi phone will take minutes. Just log into the same Google account when you first set up or in the settings menu, the system will automatically pull up all the stored records from the cloud.

📲 Open your phone settings and go to Accounts and Sync».
☁️ Make sure the switch opposite the Contacts item is activated.
🔄 Click the “Sync” button or wait for the automatic update.
✅ Check the number in the phone book of the new device.

⚠️ Warning: Make sure your old phone has a tick opposite your Google account, otherwise the sync will be successful, but the data will remain in local storage that you did not transfer.

The main advantage of this method is that your contacts will be safe even if both smartphones are lost or stolen completely, and can be accessed from any computer or other gadget via a browser by going to the Google Contacts website.

Use of Mi Cloud and Mi Mover

Xiaomi owners have access to a powerful tool called Mi Cloud, which is a proprietary cloud storage that is deeply integrated into the system, and you will need a Mi Account account, which is created when you first turn on your phone.

To save numbers, go to Settings → Mi Account → Sync. You need to activate the Contacts slider. Once turned on, the phone will automatically upload all records to the Mi Cloud cloud. On the new device, it is easy to log in under the same login.

📊 What kind of contact transfer do you think is most convenient?

Through Google Account

Through the Mi Cloud

Using the Mi Mover app

Through SIM-map

Bluetooth

An alternative to the cloud is the Mi Mover app, which allows you to transfer data directly from phone to phone over a Wi-Fi connection, which is ideal if you don’t have a stable Internet or don’t want to upload data to the cloud.

Run the app on both devices. On the old phone, select "I send" and on the new Xiaomi, "I receive." Scan QR-code and in the list of transmitted data, be sure to tick the item "Contacts».

🚀 Data transfer speed is much higher than via Bluetooth.
🔒 Data is transmitted over the local network and does not leave your devices.
📂 You can transfer not only numbers, but also the history of calls and messages.

Transfer through SIM-map

Method by using SIM-The card is considered obsolete, but it is still relevant in situations where you need to quickly flip the basic list of numbers without using the Internet.

On an old phone, go to the Contacts app, click on the menu (three dots or bars) and select Settings or Import/Export. SIM-The system will warn that some data may be lost.

⚠️ Attention: SIM-The card has limited memory and supports only text fields.Photos, extra numbers, email addresses and long names will be cropped or deleted when copying.

After export, insert SIM-Map to the new Xiaomi smartphone. Contact, select import and source SIM-The map, and the destination is the phone memory or Google account, and it takes a while to process, after which all the numbers will appear in the list.

Parameter	Google Account	SIM-map	Mi Mover
Photo preservation	Yes.	No.	Yes.
Length of name	No restrictions.	Limited (usually 15-20 characters)	No restrictions.
Several rooms.	Yes.	Only one major one.	Yes.
We need the Internet.	Yes.	No.	No (locally)

☑️ Checklist before data transfer

Charge both phones to at least 50%Check the free space in the cloudEnsure the stability of the Wi-Fi networkMake a manual backup on the PC

Done: 0 / 4

Working with VCF files

The universal format for storing contact data is the.vcf (vCard) file, which is good because the file can be saved to a flash drive, sent to a messenger or mail, and then opened on any device.

In the contacts app on your old phone, select the option “Import/Export” and click “Export to Device Memory” or “Export to File.vcf.” The system will create a file with all your records. Find it in the file manager (usually at the root of the folder or in directory /Contacts/).

Transfer this file to the new Xiaomi in any convenient way: via Bluetooth, Telegram, email or USB-On the new device, just click on the file, and the system will prompt you to import the contacts contained in it.

What happens if the VCF file is not opened?

If the phone doesn’t offer import when you click on the file, the file association may be downed. Try opening the Contacts app, go to the settings and select Import from the file.vcf, then manually specify the path to the saved document through the file manager.> This is especially useful if you're changing platforms, like moving from iPhone to Xiaomi. VCF It is also available through the standard contact app, making migration between Android and iOS quite easy.Restore from a local backup system MIUI And the new HyperOS has a built-in tool to create full backups of the system, and it's the deepest level of data retention, which includes not only contacts, but also system settings, icon layouts, and application data. → The phone. → Standby recovery. You can create a backup for internal memory or external storage. Select "Backup", check "Contacts" and start the process. The backup file you get should be transferred to a new phone. If you used an external drive, just plug it in. If the backup is on the internal memory of an old phone, copy the folder MIUI/backup/AllBackup To your computer or cloud, and then place it in the same directory on the new device. 💾 The method saves all contact fields, including rare tags. 🔐 Data is not sent to third-party servers while remaining under your control. ⏳ The recovery process may take longer than synchronization. ⚠️ Note: Local backup is often password protected if you have installed it. Make sure to remember the code, otherwise it will be impossible to restore data to the new device. After transferring contacts, users often face the problem of duplicate records. This happens when the same number is stored in Google, in the phone’s memory, and in the Mi Cloud at the same time. Fortunately, Xiaomi’s shell has a built-in cleaning tool. Open the Contacts app, click on the menu and select Clean Duplicates (or Combine Repeated). The system will analyze the database and offer to combine records with the same numbers or names. Automatic unification is the safestacked option, since the algorithm stores all the unique fields (for example, adds a work number to the home), you can use the cleaner’s web-based contact information. There’s a “Combine and Fix” feature that works even more efficiently, finding similar names with even small typos. 💡Main point: Cleaning contacts regularly and distributing them correctly to accounts prevents chaos in the phone book when you change devices (FAQ) What if contacts are lost after logging in? Don't panic. Most likely, the Contacts app just hides the display source. Go to the display settings (filter) and make sure that the "All Contacts" checkbox or the specific account is selected. Google/Mi, And check the Internet connection, can I transfer contacts if the screen of the old phone is broken? Yes, if the phone turns on and responds to touch, but you can't see the image, you can connect it. USB-mouse-wise OTG-adapter. If the screen does not respond at all, but the debugging works on the USB, You can try software, but the easiest way to get it out SIM-map or cloud sync if it was previously enabled. How many contacts can you save to SIM-- Standard capacity. SIM-The maps range from 250 to 500 entries. Modern maps can hold more, but the format of SIM storage is very primitive and is not designed for large amounts of information with multimedia content. Is it safe to use third-party applications for portability? It is better to use Xiaomi’s built-in tools or official applications from Google. Third-party programs from the Play Market can request excessive permissions and transfer your personal data to third parties.