Connecting Xiaomi Mi Band 5 to Huawei phone: full instructions with solutions to typical errors

Fitness bracelet Xiaomi Mi Band 5 remains one of the most popular gadgets for monitoring activity, despite the release of new models. Owners of Huawei smartphones often face nuances when trying to synchronize due to the features of the firmware EMUI In this article, you will find not only step-by-step connection instructions, but also unique solutions for typical problems – from lack of notifications to Bluetooth errors.

It's important to understand that while both brands are Chinese, their ecosystems are not initially optimized for collaboration. The Mi Band 5 uses the Mi Fitness app (formerly Mi Fit), which can conflict with Huawei's energy-saving algorithms. EMUI 12, HarmonyOS 3.0 and HarmonyOS 4.0 – all the nuances are taken into account in the manual.

1. Preparing Huawei phone for connection

Before syncing, you need to configure your smartphone to avoid problems with Bluetooth and background processes. Huawei devices by default activate aggressive battery optimization mechanisms that can block Mi Fitness.

First, check the operating system version:

• 📱 EMUI: Settings → The phone. → Version. EMUI
• 🌐 HarmonyOS: Settings → The phone. → HarmonyOS version

For stable operation of the Mi Band 5 version is recommended EMUI 10.0+ or HarmonyOS 2.0.+. Earlier versions may have trouble with notifications.

Turn off the energy-saving features for the Mi Fitness app:

1. Go to Settings. → Annexes → Annexes
2. Find Mi Fitness (or Zepp Life for new versions)
3. Choose the Battery. → Launch control and install manually
4. Activate options: ⚡ Auto-start 🔄 Second launch 📱 Background work

Huawei P40 Pro

HarmonyOS 3.0+

"Optimization of the system"

Settings → Battery → Additional

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If notifications are delayed after connecting, add Mi Fitness to the list of “Secure Apps” via Settings. → Security → Application authorizations.

2. Installation and configuration of the Mi Fitness application

The official Mi Band 5 management app is Mi Fitness (formerly Mi Fit). In 2026, Xiaomi merged the functionality with the Zepp platform, so in some regions the app may be called Zepp Life.

• 🌍 AppGallery (official Huawei store): [link to app](https://appgallery.huawei.com/#/app/C101047877)
• 🤖 APK-file from Xiaomi official website (if AppGallery is not available in your region)

After installation, follow the following steps:

1. Start Mi Fitness and sign up with Xiaomi Account (or sign in if you already have an account).
2. Click "Add device" and select "Breasure" → "Mi Smart Band 5".
3. Allow all requested permissions: 📍 Geodata (for accurate tracking of activity) 📱 Notifications (for synchronization of messages) 🔋 Energy saving (turn off optimization for the application)

It'll appear on screen. QR-Do not close the application until the process is complete, it may cause synchronization to fail. QR-The code is not scanned, try an alternative method of connecting via Bluetooth manually (more on this in the next section).

3. Mi Band 5 pairing with phone via Bluetooth

If you are automatically connected through QR-The code didn't work, use manual mode:

1. Turn on Bluetooth on your phone (Settings → Bluetooth).
2. On the Mi Band 5 bracelet, swipe up until the menu appears, then select Connect (Bluetooth icon).
3. In the Mi Fitness app, click “Manually Connect” and select the Mi Band 5 from the list of available devices.

If the device does not appear in the list, reset the bracelet settings:

1. On the bracelet, go to Settings → Reset (icon with a wrench).
2. Confirm the reset by holding the button on the screen for 3 seconds.
3. Repeat the connection attempt.

The Mi Fitness app is launched|Bluetooth is on on the phone|Bracelet charged at least 20 times%|Disabled. VPN and energy-saving regimes-->

4. Notification setting and data synchronization

Once connected successfully, you need to configure notifications and sync settings, a process that has limitations on Huawei phones. HMS (Huawei Mobile Services).

To include notifications:

1. In Mi Fitness, go to Profile → Mi Smart Band 5 → Notifications.
2. Activate the Notifications switch and select the applications you want to receive notifications from (for example, WhatsApp, Telegram, SMS).
3. In your phone settings, allow Mi Fitness to access notifications: 📱 Settings → Notifications → Application authorizations 🔍 Find Mi Fitness and turn on "Show notifications"

For stable data synchronization (steps, pulse, sleep) do:

• 🔄 Enable "Autosync" in bracelet settings (Profile) → Mi Smart Band 5 → Synchronization of data).
• 📶 Make sure your phone is on mobile internet or Wi-Fi – without a network, data will not be uploaded to the cloud.
• ⏱ Set the sync interval: Every 30 minutes (recommended for battery savings).

5. Update to the firmware of Mi Band 5 via Huawei

Regular firmware updates fix bugs and add new features. On Huawei phones, the upgrade process may differ from the standard one due to the limitations of Google Play Services.

To update the Mi Band 5:

1. Open Mi Fitness and go to Profile → Mi Smart Band 5 → Firmware Update.
2. If the update is available, click "Download" and wait for the download to complete.
3. Connect the bracelet to charge and make sure the charge level is above 50%.
4. Click Update and do not turn off Bluetooth until the process is complete (it will take 5-10 minutes).

On Huawei without Google Play Services (e.g. Mate 40 Pro or Google Play Services) P50 Pro) the update may not be downloaded through the application:

⚠️ Note: Use an alternative method through APK-Download the current version from the forum MIUI Turkey (Mi Band 5 section) and install through Mi Fitness manually.Risk! Wrong firmware can knock the bracelet out of order.

6. Solving typical connection problems

Even after successful synchronization, Huawei users may encounter errors, and consider the most common ones and how to fix them.

6.1. the bracelet is connected, but the data is not synchronized

Reason: conflict with Huawei Health (Huawei fitness tracker app) Solution:

1. Open the Settings. → Annexes → Huawei Health.
2. Stop the application ("Forced Stop") and turn off autostart.
3. Reboot your phone and re-synchronize the data in Mi Fitness.

Notifications are not provided with text (only "New Communication")

This is a restriction of HarmonyOS related to the privacy policy.

• 📋 In Mi Fitness, turn off and turn on notifications for the problem app again.
• 🔧 In the phone settings, allow Mi Fitness to access Read Notifications (Settings) → Annexes → Special permits → Reading notifications).

6.3 Bracelet discharges quickly after connecting to Huawei

The blame lies on background Bluetooth activity and frequent synchronizations.

• ⏳ Increase the autosynchronization interval to 1 hour.
• 🔋 Disable unnecessary notifications (e.g. from games or social media).
• 🌙 Activate the Battery Saving mode on the bracelet (Settings) → Display. → Energy saving regime).

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If the bracelet is not synchronized after all the manipulations, try temporarily disabling Huawei Mobile Services (HMS) This may help, but disables some of the features of the Huawei ecosystem (e.g., Huawei AppGallery).

7. Alternative ways of connecting (without Mi Fitness)

If the official Mi Fitness app doesn’t work on your Huawei, you can use third-party solutions. One of the proven options is the Notify & Fitness for Mi Band app (available on AppGallery and APKMirror).

Advantages of alternative software:

• 🔄 Support for older versions EMUI (up to EMUI 8.0).
• 🛠 More notification settings (e.g., keyword filtering).
• 📊 Expanded statistics of sleep and exercise.

To connect with Notify & Fitness:

1. Remove Mi Fitness and install an alternative app.
2. Turn on Bluetooth and allow all permissions requested.
3. In the application menu, select "Connect the device" → Mi Band 5.
4. Follow the instructions on the screen (you may need to manually enter the MAC- bracelet address).

⚠️ Note: Third-party apps may not support all of the features of the Mi Band 5, such as: SpO2 (oxygenation) or PAI (Personal activity index. Check the reviews before using 4PDA or XDA Developers.

8 Mi Band 5 compatible with different Huawei models

Not all Huawei smartphones work equally well with the Mi Band 5. Below is a compatibility table based on user tests and our checks:

For devices with EMUI 9.0 and below (e.g. Huawei) P20 Lite or Y6 2018: Official Mi Band 5 connection impossible due to outdated Bluetooth version (Bluetooth 4.2 required)+). In this case, you only need to buy a newer bracelet (for example, Mi Band 6 or Mi Band 7) or use the Mi Band 4, which supports Bluetooth 4.0.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)