How to Move Data from Samsung to Xiaomi: A Complete 2026 Guide

Moving from Samsung to Xiaomi is not just about changing your brand, it’s also about migrating all the important data: contacts, photos, messages, and even app settings. Many users fear losing valuable information or spending hours manually copying files. In fact, the process can be simplified to a few clicks if you know the proven methods.

In this article, we will discuss 5 working ways to transfer data, from the official Mi Mover tool to cloud services and manual copying via PC, which method is faster, which is more reliable, and how to avoid typical errors (for example, losing call history when switching between Android versions of different manufacturers), and we will compare the transfer speed for each option and give recommendations for optimizing the process.

Important: If you are switching from an old Samsung Galaxy (e.g. Galaxy) S8 Note 9 for the new Xiaomi 14 or Redmi Note 13 Pro+, Note that some data (such as Samsung Knox settings or branded wallpaper) will not be transferred, but the main files - photos, videos, contacts - will move without problems.

1.The official way: Mi Mover by Xiaomi

Mi Mover is a proprietary application from Xiaomi, specially designed for migration of data from other Android devices. It supports the transfer of contacts, messages (SMS/MMS), Photos, videos, audio files, calendars, even some app settings, the main advantage of which is that it doesn't require a computer and works directly between phones via Wi-Fi Direct.

How to use:

• 📱 Install Mi Mover on both phones: download it from Google Play to Samsung (if not preinstalled) and find it in Settings → The phone. → Data Imports to Xiaomi.
• 🔗 Connect both devices to the same Wi-Fi network or use a direct connection (select the option “No router” in the application).
• 📤 On Samsung, select the role of "Sender" (Sender), on Xiaomi - "Receiver" (Receiver).
• 🔍 Scan it. QR-code from the Xiaomi screen with a Samsung camera or enter PIN-manually.
• ✅ Select data types for transfer and confirm the transfer.

The speed of the transfer depends on the amount of data and the stability of the connection. For example, 10 GB of photos and videos will move beyond the distance of the data. ~20 to 40 minutes. If the process is interrupted, try it:

• 🔄 Restart both phones and reconnect.
• 📶 Switch to another Wi-Fi network (e.g. from 5 GHz to 2.4 GHz).
• 🔋 Make sure that both devices have a battery charge > 50%.

Charging both phones > 50%|Free space on Xiaomi > portability|Disabled. VPN firewalls|Both phones are connected to the same Wi-Fi network (or a direct connection is used)|Power saving mode is disabled on Samsung

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⚠️ Note: Mi Mover does not transfer data from some proprietary Samsung apps, such as Samsung Notes or Samsung Health, and will require separate exports (see the cloud services section).

2. Transfer through Google Account (for contacts, calendars, notes)

If you've used Google services on Samsung, most of the data is already synced to the cloud, and this is a good way to migrate:

• 📇 Contacts (from Google Contacts).
• 📅 Calendar (Google Calendar).
• 📝 Notes (Google Keep).
• 🎵 Music and books (if you bought them on Google Play).

Instructions:

1. On Samsung, open Settings → Accounts and archiving → Account management and make sure Google sync is enabled for the right categories.
2. On Xiaomi, add the same Google account to Settings → Accounts. → Add an account.
3. Enable synchronization: Settings → Accounts. → Google → Synchronization of the account.
4. Wait until the synchronization is complete (it can take up to 10 minutes).

Advantages of the method:

• ⚡ Instant access to data after adding an account.
• 🔄 Automatic updates when changes are made (e.g. new contacts).
• 🌐 It works even if Samsung is already dropped or unavailable.

⚠️ Note: If Samsung used the Samsung Cloud, the data from the cloud is not synced with Google. First, export it manually (see the section on the cloud).

3. Copying through cable OTG computer

If you have USB-cable (preferably original from Samsung or Xiaomi) and adapter OTG, You can transfer files directly, and this is a good way to do large amounts of data (e.g., 50).+ GB photos and videos) and does not depend on the speed of the Internet.

Option 1: Direct connection via OTG

• 🔌 Connect Samsung to Xiaomi via OTG-adapter (needs cable) USB-C → USB-C or USB-C → Micro-USB, depending on the model).
• 📂 On Xiaomi, open Files and select USB-device.
• 📋 Copy the right folders (DCIM for photos, downloads, etc.) to internal memory or SD-Xiaomi.

Option 2: Through a computer (PC or Mac)

1. Connect Samsung to your computer and allow access to files (select File Transfer in the notification).
2. Copy the data on a PC (for example, in a folder on the desktop).
3. Disable Samsung, connect Xiaomi and transfer files back.

The transmission speed through the cable can reach 40-60 MB / s (depending on the version). USB). For comparison:

• 📸 1,000 (~5 GB) copied for ~2-3 minutes.
• 🎥 1 hour video in 4K (~20 GB - per ~10 minutes.

1. Install Samsung Smart Switch drivers (for Windows).

2. Use another USB-port (preferably) USB 3.0 blue).

3. Enable Debugging by USB In Settings → For developers (if it doesn't help, turn it off again).

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4. Cloud services: Samsung Cloud, Google Drive, Yandex Disk

Cloud storage is convenient if you have slow Internet or no cable, >10 GB) may require a paid rate. Consider three popular options:

Samsung Cloud (export only):

• 📁 Open the Settings. → Accounts and archiving → Samsung Cloud.
• 🔄 Select data for backup (contacts, calendar, notes, calls).
• 📥 Once completed, download the archive to your PC via the web version of Samsung Cloud and transfer to Xiaomi.

Google Drive (universally):

• 📤 On Samsung, upload files to Google Drive (via the app or Settings) → Google → Backup).
• 📥 Download data on Xiaomi via the same app.

Yandex Disk (for users from the CIS):

• 📲 Install Yandex Disk on both phones.
• 📤 On Samsung, upload files to the Autoboot folder.
• 📥 On Xiaomi, download them back.

5. Transfer of applications and their data

The hardest part about the transition between brands is migrating apps with data storage, like you want to keep chat history on Telegram and correspondence on WhatsApp. Here's how to do it:

Method 1: Backup to the cloud

• 🔄 For most applications (for example, Telegram, Viber) just log into the same account on Xiaomi – the data will be downloaded automatically.
• 📱 For WhatsApp: On Samsung, make a backup in WhatsApp Settings → chat → Backup. Copy the WhatsApp folder (from internal memory) on Xiaomi. Install WhatsApp on Xiaomi and restore from local copy.

Method 2: Titanum Backup (for root users)

If you have root access on Samsung, you can use Titanium Backup to create a full copy of the apps and their data, but this method requires technical skills and does not work on new Xiaomi models with a locked bootloader.

Method 3: Transfer through APK + OBB

For games (such as Genshin Impact or PUBG Mobile):

1. Copy. APK-game file (can be retrieved through APK Extractor).
2. Move the folder. Android/obb/[Xiaomi name game.
3. Install. APK and check the performance.

⚠️ Note: Some applications (e.g. banking or with) DRM-protection) may block access when transferred to another device, in which case re-authorization will be required.

Through Mi Mover|Google Account|Cable OTG/PC|Cloud services (Google Drive, Yandex Disk)|Manual transfer of files one by one

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6. Transfer of multimedia: photo, video, music

Photos and videos usually take up the most space, so they're very sensitive to speed and reliability, so let's look at the best options.

Option 1: Google Photos (for compressed copies)

• 📸 Enable autoload in Google Photos on Samsung (Settings) → Backup and synchronization).
• 🔄 Select quality: High (free, unlimited) - photos are compressed to 16 MP, video to 1080p. Original (15 GB credit) - without quality loss.
• 📥 On Xiaomi, download photos through the Google Photos app.

Option 2: Local copying (without loss of quality)

If you want to keep the original permission (for example, for a photo in the RAW video 4K/8K), use:

• 🔌 Cable OTG (as described in section 3).
• 💻 Computer as an intermediate storage.
• 🖥️ NAS external SSD (if the data >100GB).

Option 3: Synchronization software (for music)

If you have a large collection of music:

• 🎵 Use Spotify or Apple Music – just log in to your Xiaomi account.
• 📁 For local files, copy the Music folder via cable or cloud.
• 🔄 For playlists, export them to VLC or Poweramp (format.m3u).

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For photos and videos, local cable copying is a priority, and cloud services are convenient, but often compress files or limit the amount of free storage.

7.Transfer SMS, Call history and other system data

System data (SMS, Call history, Wi-Fi settings) are not synced via Google or Mi Mover:

SMS and MMS:

• 📱 Install. SMS Backup & Restore on both phones.
• 📤 On Samsung, create a backup (Backup).
• 📥 Transfer the backup file to Xiaomi (via cable or cloud) and restore (Restore).

Call history:

• 📞 Use Call Logs Backup & Restore (similar) SMS).
• ⚠️ Note that some Xiaomi models do not support restoring call history due to restrictions. MIUI.

Wi-Fi settings:

• 📶 Copy the file. wpa_supplicant.conf from /data/misc/wifi/ (root).
• 🔧 Or use the WiFi Password Viewer app to export passwords.

Notes and reminders:

• 📝 If you have used Samsung Notes, export notes to.sbn or.pdf via App Settings → Exports.
• 🔄 For Google Keep, sync will happen automatically when you add an account.

8. Post-transfer validation and optimization

After the data transfer is complete, perform several checks to make sure everything is working correctly:

Step 1: Checking File Integrity

• 📂 Open Explorer on Xiaomi and compare the number of files in folders DCIM, Downloads, etc. with Samsung source.
• 🖼️ Watch a few random photos and videos for damage.

Step 2: Testing applications

• 📱 Open key apps (WhatsApp, Telegram, banking) and check: Is your email history still alive? Are notifications working? Do you need to log in again.

Step 3: Optimizing Storage

• 🗑️ Remove duplicate files with Files by Google or CCleaner.
• 🔄 Transfer the rarely used files to SD-card (if Xiaomi supports memory expansion).
• 📊 Check the occupied space in Settings → Warehouse.

Step 4: Set up synchronization

• ☁️ Enable autosynchronization for Google Photos, Contacts and Calendar.
• 🔄 Set up backup in Settings → Accounts. → Xiaomi Cloud (if you use a proprietary cloud).

1. Reboot the phone.

2. Clear the cache in Settings → Annexes → Application management → Clear the cache.

3. Disable animation in Settings → Special facilities → Remove animations.

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FAQ: Frequent questions