Where in Xiaomi phone saves a recording of a conversation: a complete guide to finding and managing audio files

You have enabled a recording of the conversation on Xiaomi, Redmi or POCO, But you can't find the file you saved, or you accidentally deleted an important record and you want to restore it, and in this article, we're going to look at where the audio files of the calls are stored in the firmware. MIUI, How to open them through standard and third-party applications, and what to do if the records disappear after updating or resetting settings.

The manufacturer does not always obviously place these files – their path depends on the version. MIUI, Smartphone models and even regional settings, like the Xiaomi 13 Pro with MIUI 14 records can lie in one place, and on the Redmi Note 10 MIUI 12.5 in another. We collected up-to-date data for all popular models and versions of software, including the features of the built-in voice recorder and the application Call Recording.

Important: if you use third-party recording software (such as Cube Call Recorder or Cube Call Recorder) ACR), The files can be stored in a suite of these applications. In this article, we will focus on Xiaomi’s standard solutions – they work on 90% of the brand’s devices without additional installations.

Standard location of records in MIUI: formality

In most cases, audio files of calls are saved in a folder. /storage/emulated/0/MIUI/sound_recorder/call_rec/. This path is relevant to MIUI 12–14 on models from Xiaomi Mi 9 Xiaomi 14 Ultra. There are nuances, though:

• 📁 For MIUI 14+: files can be automatically sorted by date in subfolders of the form 2026-05-15.
• 🔄 On the old versions (MIUI 11 And below: The path could look like /storage/emulated/0/Recorder/ or /storage/emulated/0/CallRecord/.
• 📱 For POCO/Redmi with custom firmware: sometimes the records are duplicated in /storage/emulated/0/Download/CallRecords/.
• 🔒 If encryption is enabled: files can only be hidden and accessed through the Call Record app.

To find the folder quickly:

1. Open the Files app (Blue folder icon).
2. Go to the Category section → Audio.
3. In the search bar, enter call_rec recorder.
4. The system will show all the relevant folders - select the one where there are files with the extension.m4a or.

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If the folder call_rec Check the recording settings in the Phone application: perhaps files are saved to the Mi Cloud cloud or to the phone. SD-map.

How to check if your Xiaomi conversation record is enabled

Before searching for files, make sure that the recording function is activated at all. MIUI It may be disabled by default due to legal restrictions in some countries (e.g. EU).

Check the settings:

1. Open the phone application (pipe icon).
2. Click on the three dots in the upper right corner → Settings.
3. Select the Recording of conversations (or Call recording in English firmware).
4. Make sure the switch is in the On position and selected Record all calls or Record selected ones.

If you don't have a Record Conversations menu, your firmware doesn't support the "out of the box" feature, in which case you'll have to use third-party applications (which we'll discuss below) or install a modified firmware that supports recording.

Search for records through the application "Files" and the explorer

If you don't want to go through the system folders, use the built-in file manager. Here's a step-by-step guide:

1. Open the Files app (if not, download Mi File Manager from Google Play).
2. In the lower menu, select Categories → Audio.
3. In the upper right corner, click on the search icon (magnifying glass) and enter call or rec.
4. The system will display all audio files associated with the recordings: CallRecord_20260515_143022_+79123456789.m4a 15876543210_incoming_20260515.amr
5. Click on the file to listen to it through the built-in player.

If the search fails to produce results:

• 🔍 Check the Recycle Bin in the Files app - records may have been deleted recently.
• 📁 Go to the Inner Memory → MIUI → sound_recorder manually.
• 💾 If used SD-map, check the folder /storage/XXXX-XXXX/MIUI/sound_recorder/ (where XXXX-XXXX — ID your card).

Check if the recording function is enabled in the phone settings|

Use search for the keywords “call” or “rec"|

Look through the folder. MIUI/sound_recorder manually|

Make sure files are not hidden (enable hidden files display)|

Check out Mi Cloud Cloud Storage-->

Features of storing records on different Xiaomi models

Firmware MIUI And these are the key differences, depending on the model and the region:

Xiaomi 13/14 series (MIUI 14+)

On flagships, records are saved in format.m4a High bitrate (up to 192 kbps) files are automatically sorted by date in subfolders, feature: if synced with Mi Cloud is enabled, the records are duplicated in the cloud and can take up space in your account.

Redmi Note 12/11/10 series

Here, the default entries are saved to.amr, a low bitrate format (12-16 kbps), which saves space but degrades quality. On some models (for example, the Redmi Note 10 Pro), files appear in the folder only after the first successful save.

POCO F5/X5/M5

On the devices. POCO The recording function can be disabled by default, and sometimes you need to enter an engineering code to activate it ##6484## And you can turn it on manually. The files are stored in the same folder. call_rec, but may have a prefix. POCO_ titled.

Old models (Mi 9, Mi) A3, Redmi 8)

On devices with MIUI 11 and below the records were often saved in the folder /Recorder/ file format, no sorting —.3gp The main problem: these files could be automatically deleted if there is a lack of memory, if you do not change the storage settings.

How to transfer recordings of conversations to a computer or other device

If you need to save your records for a long time or make room on your phone, move them to your PC or the cloud. Here are three proven ways:

Method 1: Through USB-cable

1. Connect Xiaomi to your computer via USB-cable.
2. On your phone, select File Transfer (or MTP) mode.
3. On a PC, open the Explorer (This Computer) and go to the phone folder.
4. Follow the path of internal memory → MIUI → sound_recorder → call_rec.
5. Copy the necessary files to the hard disk.

Method 2: Through the Mi Cloud

If you have synchronization enabled:

1. Go to i.mi.com and log in.
2. Go to Files or Records (depending on version).
3. Find a folder with the records of calls and download the necessary files.

Note: The free Mi Cloud tariff only provides 5GB, so records can be automatically deleted if the limit is exceeded.

Method 3: Through Third-Party Clouds (Google Drive, Yandex Disk)

1. Install the Google Drive or Yandex Disk app.
2. In the Files app, select the required records (long press). → checkmark).
3. Press Share. → Choose cloud storage.
4. Wait until the download is complete.

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When you transfer your records to your PC, don't rename your files -- they have the date, time, and number encoded in their names -- and that will help you quickly find the right conversation later.

Recovering Deleted Records of Conversations

If you accidentally delete a record, you can try to restore it, and success depends on how long it has been since you deleted it and whether programs like Clean Master have been used to clean up the memory since then.

Method 1: Through the basket in the application "Files"

V MIUI Deleted files first enter the recycle bin, where they are stored for up to 30 days:

1. Open Files → Recycle Bin (Dumpster Icon)
2. Find deleted records by date or file name.
3. Select the necessary files → click Restore.

Method 2: Recovery programs

If the files are not in the basket, use specialized utilities:

• 📱 For phone: DiskDigger, Recuva for Android (requires root rights for deep scanning).
• 💻 For PC: Recuva, EaseUS Data Recovery (if the phone is connected as a drive).

Instructions for DiskDigger:

1. Install the app from Google Play.
2. Select Full Scan (requires root).
3. Mark the Audio file types (.m4a,.amr).
4. After scanning, find records by date or size (usually 1-5 MB).
5. Save the recovered files to a memory card or cloud.

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If you regularly record important conversations, set up automatic emailing. call_rec rule in IFTTT Tasker, which will send new files to your email.

Method 3: Through Mi Cloud Backups

If you have backup enabled:

1. Go to Settings. → Mi Account → Mi Cloud → Backup of the device.
2. Check if there is a date on the backup list when the records were still on the phone.
3. Restore your backup (be aware that this will bring all your phone settings back to that date!).

⚠️ Warning: Restore from the Mi Cloud backup will overwrite the current data on your phone. Pre-save important files (photos, contacts) to another location.

Third-party Write Applications: Where They Store Files

If the standard entry in MIUI If you're not happy with it (for example, because of poor quality or lack of functionality), you could install one of the popular applications:

If you use one of these apps but can’t find the records:

• 🔧 Check the settings of the application: it is possible that files are saved to the SD-map.
• 📂 In some applications (such as Cube), records are sorted by contacts in separate folders.
• 🔒 If records are protected, they can be hidden. Enable the display of hidden files in the Explorer settings.

⚠️ Note: Third-party recording applications may conflict with the built-in function MIUI. If after installing such an application, the standard record stopped working, turn it off in the phone settings or remove the conflicting software.

Frequent problems and their solutions

Xiaomi users often face typical problems with recording conversations, and here are the most common ways to solve them:

Problem 1: Records are retained but not reproduced

Causes and solutions:

• 🎵 Damaged file: Try to play the record on another device or through a VLC Player.
• 🔊 Unsupported format: Convert the file to.mp3 with the help of Audio Converter.
• 📱 Codec error: Update the firmware or install MX Player with support for all formats.

Problem 2: Records are automatically deleted

V MIUI The function of cleaning old files can be enabled:

1. Go to Settings → Storage → Cleaning.
2. Click on three dots in the upper right corner → Cleaning settings.
3. Remove the box from the Audio Files over 30 days.

Problem 3: No sound on the recording (silence)

This is a typical problem for Android 10.+, where Google restricted apps from accessing the microphone during calls:

• 🔄 Switch to Boldbeast Call Recorder – it bypasses this restriction.
• 📞 Turn on speaker while you're talking (recording will be done through a microphone, not through a system audio stream).
• 🔧 Install a modified firmware with a write patch (for example, MIUI EU).

Problem 4: Recordings take up too much space

If the folder call_rec It's grown to a few gigabytes:

• 🗑️ Manually delete unnecessary records through the Files app.
• ⚙️ In the recording settings (Phone) → Settings → Record conversations: Choose the.amr format instead of the.amr format.m4a.
• ☁️ Set up automatic upload of records to the cloud and then delete from your phone.

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After the update MIUI records are no longer saved, reset the settings of the Phone application (Settings) → Annexes → Phone. → Warehouse → Reset. This often solves the problem without losing data.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions