Cloud reservations in Xiaomi Redmi: the full guide to 2026

Introduction: Why Backups Save Your Data

Imagine if you drop your smartphone in water, it stops turning on, and you have all the photos from your last vacation, all the correspondence with your loved ones and work documents on it. MIUI It offers to update, but after the reboot, the device forgets all settings. These situations happen more often than it seems - according to statistics, 30% of users lose important data at least once every 2 years due to breakdowns, thefts or their own mistakes. Cloud redundancy in smartphones Xiaomi Redmi is an insurance against such losses, but many people either do not know about its existence, or use it inefficiently.

Unlike on-premises backups (which are stored on the device itself or on a memory card), cloud backups store copies of your data on remote Xiaomi Cloud servers. This means that even if the phone is stolen, burned or reset to factory settings, you can restore contacts, messages, notes, and even system settings on the new device. But how does it work? How much does it cost? And why do some users complain about recovery errors? The answers are in this guide.

What is Xiaomi Cloud and how does it relate to redundancy?

Xiaomi Cloud is the equivalent of iCloud for Xiaomi’s ecosystem, but with important differences. MIUI It automatically suggests you back up when you first turn on your smartphone, but many users skip this step without understanding what data is stored and how to manage it.

Here’s what cloud redundancy includes on Redmi:

• 📱 System settings: themes, wallpaper, network parameters, sound profiles.
• 📞 Contacts and call log (synchronized separately but duplicated in backup).
• 💬 Communications (SMS/MMS) and Mi Messages (if you use a proprietary application).
• 📝 Notes, Mi Calendar, Tasks from Mi Tasks.
• 📷 Photos and videos (optional, requires separate settings in the Gallery).
• 🎮 Game and App Data (only if the developer supports Xiaomi Cloud).

Important: not all data is automatically backed up, such as Wi-Fi passwords, Mi Browser browser history, or Google account settings (email, Google Photos) stored in other clouds, and not included in the backup:

• 🚫 Established APK-Files (only a list of apps from the Mi App Store).
• 🚫 Files in Download folders, DCIM (If the synchronization of the gallery is not enabled).
• 🚫 Messenger data (WhatsApp, Telegram – they use their clouds).

How to turn on cloud redundancy on Redmi: step-by-step instructions

The backup setup takes no more 5 It's a little bit of a minute, but it requires a stable Wi-Fi connection (the amount of data can be as high as a few gigabytes). MIUI 14/15:

1. Open the Settings. → Xiaomi Account (or Mi Account) If you are not logged in, sign up or log in to an existing account.
2. Go to the Xiaomi Cloud section → Backup.
3. Click Backup to the cloud and select the data to save. We recommend that you tick all the boxes except Photos and Videos (it is better to sync them separately through the Gallery).
4. Click Start Backup. The process can take anywhere from 10 minutes to several hours depending on the amount of data.

🔹 Tip: If you have slow internet, turn on Wi-Fi Only in Xiaomi Cloud settings to avoid wasting mobile traffic.

Connect your phone to charge (the process drains the battery)

Make sure you have enough space on your Xiaomi account (free 5GB)

Turn it off. VPN (It can block access to Xiaomi servers)

Close all applications to speed up the process.-->

After the first backup, the system will automatically update the copy once a day (when connecting to Wi-Fi and charging).

1. Go to Settings. → Xiaomi Cloud → Backup → Settings.
2. Select Automatic Backup and set the interval: Daily, Weekly or Manual.

How much does cloud storage cost and how to increase space

By default, each Xiaomi account gets 5GB of free space, enough to back up your settings and contacts, but not in a photo or video. ~2-3 GB and an hour of video in 4K — 15GB.

Tariffs for additional seats (relevant for Russia and the CIS for 2026):

🔹 How to buy a place:

1. Go to Settings → Xiaomi Cloud → Storage.
2. Click Buy a Place and select a tariff.
3. Pay via a linked card, Google Pay or other available methods.

⚠️ Note: Payment through the Mi Store sometimes involves write-off errors. Before buying, check that there are enough funds on the card and disable ad blockers - they may interfere with the processing of payment.

💡 Alternative: If you don’t want to pay, you can manually transfer photos to Google Photos (15 GB free) or Yandex Drive (10 GB), and Xiaomi Cloud only store settings and contacts.

How to Recover Data from the Cloud to the New Redmi

Recovery from the backup occurs when you first turn on a new phone or after resetting, and if you missed this step, you can do it later:

1. On the new device, log in to the same Xiaomi account that was used for reservations.
2. Go to Settings → Xiaomi Cloud → Recovery.
3. Select the last backup from the list and click Restore.
4. Confirm the data recovery (the process will take 10–30 minutes).

🔹 What's recovering:

• ✅ Contacts, SMS, note-book.
• ✅ Wi-Fi settings (but not passwords – you’ll have to re-enter them).
• ✅ Installed apps (from Mi App Store).
• ✅ Wallpaper, themes, sound patterns.

🔹 What's not being restored:

• ❌ Passwords from apps and websites (they are linked to a Google account).
• ❌ Files from the Download folder (if not included in the backup).
• ❌ Game data if the game does not support Xiaomi Cloud).

⚠️ Warning: If you restore the backup to a Redmi model with a different version MIUI (for example, MIUI 13 on MIUI 15), some settings may not apply. In this case, after recovery, check: Work NFC (Sometimes you reset your payment cards; Double Application settings (cloned messengers); Application access rights (Settings) → Confidentiality).

💡

Before restoring, check the version MIUI on an old and new device, if the difference is greater than 2 versions (e.g, MIUI 12 → MIUI 15), first update the old device, then create a fresh backup.

Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them

Even a proven service can fail, and here are the typical problems and solutions.

🔹 Error "Authorization failed":

If you log in to your account, a network error or incorrect password appears, but you are confident in the data:

1. Try resetting your password through account.xiaomi.com.
2. Make sure your phone has the correct date and time (Settings) → Additionally. → Date and time).
3. If you are using two-factor authentication, check it out. SMS or email to code.

🔹 Backup's stuck at 99%:

This is a common problem with slow Internet.

• Connect to another Wi-Fi network (e.g., 5 GHz instead of 2.4 GHz).
• Reboot your phone and try again.
• If it doesn’t work, cancel the current backup and launch a new one.

1. whether the synchronization in the Gallery is enabled (Settings) → Synchronizing albums).

Is the cloud storage full?

3. Have files been manually deleted from another device (they are synchronized between devices).-->

Xiaomi Cloud Alternatives: What’s Best for Redmi

Xiaomi Cloud is a good ecosystem for the industry MIUI, It's not without its drawbacks: limited free space, custom firmware recovery issues, Xiaomi account binding:

🔹 How to choose?

• 📱 If you care about settings MIUI (Topics, wallpaper, system settings – use Xiaomi Cloud.
• 📷 If you need to save photos and videos – Google Photos or Yandex Drive.
• 🔧 If you are a power user and want a full backup (including game data) + locality.

💡 Combined approach: Many Redmi users combine Xiaomi Cloud (for settings) + Google Photos (for media files) gives maximum reliability without unnecessary costs.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions