Where is the Recycle Bin on Xiaomi Mi 8: Finding Deleted Files and Alternative Recovery Ways

Have you deleted an important file on the Xiaomi Mi 8 and now you can't find it? Or are you trying to clear the memory but you don't know where to look for the cart? The problem is that on Xiaomi smartphones -- unlike computers or even some other Android devices -- there's no single system basket where all the deleted data goes, instead files can be temporarily stored in different places depending on the type of content and applications used.

In this article, we will discuss where to look for a shopping cart on Xiaomi Mi 8 for photos, videos, documents and other files, as well as what to do if standard methods do not work.

• 📁 Why there is no shared basket on the Mi 8 and how to store deleted files
• 📸 Where to search for deleted photos and videos (including hidden folders)
• 📄 How to recover documents, music and other files through third-party apps
• ⚙️ How to set up automatic backups so you don’t lose data in the future

Important: If you've tried to recover files and found nothing, don't despair. At the end of this article, we'll give you a list of proven deep memory scanning software that often finds data even after formatting.

Why Xiaomi Mi 8 doesn’t have a standard cart and how it works

Unlike Windows or macOS, where all deleted files fall into a single bin, Android — and Xiaomi Mi 8 in particular — uses a disparate temporary storage system.

• 📱 Android architecture: the system does not have a global basket at the OS level, it is replaced by baskets of individual applications (gallery, file manager, etc.).
• 🔄 Optimizing memory: MIUI (Xiaomi firmware aggressively clears cache and temporary files to free up space.
• 🛠️ Manufacturer Settings: Some Xiaomi models (including the Mi 8) don’t have a built-in Recycle Bin in the default file manager.

This means that:

• 📷 Deleted photos and videos can be stored in the Gallery app shopping cart (but not always).
• 📄 Documents and APK Most often deleted irrevocably, if you do not use a third-party file manager with a basket.
• 🎵 Music and audio files don’t usually make it to the cart, but they can stay in the player’s cache.

If you're looking for a computer-like shopping cart, it's not there, but that doesn't mean that files are lost forever, but you can recover them in other ways, which we'll talk about later.

⚠️ Note: If you deleted files more than 30 days ago and did not use backup, the chances of recovery are minimal.The longer the time has passed, the more likely the data has been overwritten with new files.

Where to look for a cart for photos and videos on Xiaomi Mi 8

The most common request is how to return deleted photos. On the Xiaomi Mi 8, the standard Gallery app (or Google Photos if you use it) answers this.

1. Open the Gallery app (a icon with multi-colored squares).
2. Slip on three horizontal lines (menu) in the upper left corner.
3. Select Recycle Bin (or recently deleted in some versions of MIUI).
4. Here you will see all photos and videos deleted in the last 30 days (the time limit may vary depending on your settings).

If there is no basket item:

• 🔍 Check if the folder is hidden: go to Gallery Settings → Show hidden folders.
• 📂 Try to find the.trash or Recycle Bin folder through the file manager (it can be hidden).
• 🔄 Update the Gallery app via Google Play – the old versions may not have had the shopping cart.

If you are using Google Photos:

1. Open the application and tap on the profile avatar in the upper right corner.
2. Pick the basket.
3. The files are stored here for 60 days, after which they are deleted forever.

Check the DCIM/.thumbnails folder (miniatures can be saved)

Use a file manager search (enter part of the file name)

Connect your phone to your PC and scan the memory with Recuva

Try to restore it via Google Drive (if you have synced)-->

How to recover documents, music and other files

The photos are sorted out, but what if you delete a Word document, a ZIP archive, or an audio file? It's more complicated, because the standard Xiaomi Mi 8 apps don't have a basket for these types of data.

Method 1: File Manager with a basket

If you are using a third-party file manager (e.g. ES Explorer, Solid Explorer, or FX File Explorer), check:

1. Open the manager and find the Recycle Bin or Recycle Bin section (usually in the side menu).
2. In Solid Explorer, the basket is called Garbage and is located on the main menu.
3. In FX File Explorer, enable the Recycle Bin in the settings: Settings → General → Enable the Recycle Bin.

Method 2: Recovery via PC

If you don’t have a cart, connect the Xiaomi Mi 8 to your computer and use data recovery software:

Instructions for Recuva:

1. Connect the Mi 8 to your PC in File Transfer (MTP) mode.
2. Run Recuva and select the file type (such as Images or Documents).
3. Specify the path to the phone's internal memory (usually This Computer → [Phone Model]).
4. Press Analysis and wait for the scan to be completed.
5. Mark the files you need and click Restore.

⚠️ Warning: Do not save recovered files back to your phone - this can overwrite the remaining data.

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If the phone is not detected on a PC, enable debugging by USB in the developer settings (Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (tap 7 times) → Developer settings → Debugging by USB).

Hidden folders and system directories: where can you store deleted files?

On the Xiaomi Mi 8, some files are not deleted and moved to hidden system folders, which can be found through the file manager by enabling the display of hidden files:

1. Open Explorer (standard file manager MIUI).
2. Slip on three dots in the upper right corner and select Settings.
3. Activate the option to show hidden files.
4. Go to the root folder of internal memory and find:

• 📁.thumbnails – thumbnails of images (sometimes remain even after the originals are deleted).
• 📁.trash or.recycle – a basket of some file managers.
• 📁 Android/data — cached files from applications can be stored here.
• 📁 MIUI/Backup — backup copies of the system (if they were created).

If you use SD-check it through the adapter on the PC – sometimes the files remain in the root directory of the card under names like RECOVERY or LOST.DIR.

Note that the LOST.DIR folder is created by the system when the card is crashed (for example, if the card was retrieved without safely disabling), and the files inside it are usually corrupted, but sometimes they can be restored.

How to set up an automatic basket on Xiaomi Mi 8

To keep files in the future, you can set up automatic backups or use Recycle Bin applications.

1. Include the basket in the standard gallery

If your MIUI version is disabled:

1. Open the gallery.
2. Go to Settings (cog in the upper right corner).
3. Find the basket item and turn it on by setting a storage period (maximum 30 days).

2.Use Google Photos

Google Photos automatically saves deleted files in the Recycle Bin for 60 days:

1. Install the app from Google Play.
2. Log in to your Google account.
3. Enable Backup and Synchronization in the settings.
4. All photos will now be available in the Google Photos Recycle Bin.

3. Install a file manager with a basket

We recommend Solid Explorer or FX File Explorer:

• 📌 Solid Explorer:
• 📌 FX File Explorer:

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Even with the shopping cart turned on, don’t store important files on your phone alone. Use cloud services (Google Drive, Mi Cloud) or external drives for backups.

What to do if files are not restored: extreme measures

If standard methods do not help, radical methods remain, but they require caution:

Recovery via TWRP (for advanced users)

If your Xiaomi Mi 8 has a custom TWRP recavator installed, you can try:

1. Upload the phone to TWRP (clip Power + Volume up).
2. Select Advanced → File Manager.
3. Check the folders /data/media/0/ and /sdcard/.
4. Copy the necessary files to an external drive.

⚠️ Warning: Without experience with TWRP You're at risk of damage to the system, and this is only a good method if you've previously installed custom firmware.

2. Contact the service center

If files are critical (such as work documents or personal photos) and self-recovery doesn't work, you can turn to specialized services that use professional memory reading equipment at a low level.

The cost of such a service starts from 3,000 rubles, but the chances of success are higher than with software recovery. M1803E1A or M1803E1G).

3. Checking through ADB (for technical users)

If you are familiar with ADB (Android Debug Bridge), you can scan the memory directly:

adb shell


su




find /data -name ".jpg" -o -name ".png" -o -name "*.mp4" > /sdcard/recovery_list.txt

This command will find all the images and videos in the internal memory and save the list in a file. recovery_list.txt. You can open it on your phone and check if there are any files found.

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Before using ADB, make sure that the phone is debugging over USB and you have given superuser (root) rights if required.

FAQ: Frequent questions about the cart on Xiaomi Mi 8