How to transfer applications to a memory card in Xiaomi smartphones: all ways 2026

While modern models (such as the Redmi Note 12 or POCO X5) are equipped with 128–256 GB drives, many low-end devices still offer only 32–64 GB, of which up to 10–15 GB is occupied by the MIUI system. The microSD card seems to be a logical solution, but here users are waiting for restrictions: not all applications support portability, and some methods require root rights or command line.

In this article, we will discuss all the current ways to transfer applications to SD-map 2026 year, including official instruments MIUI 14/15, And there are hidden Android features, and there are workarounds for stubborn programs, and we'll go into the way that you format a card as an internal drive, which is a method that can fool the system, but it has critical flaws that many people don't mention. If you use Xiaomi on Android 13/14, This guide will help to free up without losing data.

Why Xiaomi restricts the portability of applications to SD-card?

Smartphone manufacturers, including Xiaomi, are making it difficult to migrate apps to external media for three key reasons:

• 🔒 Security: SD-cards slower than internal memory (eMMC/UFS), This can lead to lags in games or banking, for example, the SberBank Online app will refuse to work from the card due to the risk of data leakage.
• ⚡ Performance: Microslurry reading with microSD (even class) A2) Tests show that transferring WhatsApp or Telegram to a map increases chat opening times by 30-50%.
• 📱 Google policy: Starting with Android 9, Google has banned the porting of apps to Android SD without root rights, leaving only a "partial" transfer (cache and media files). MIUI They follow these rules, but they add their limitations.

However, workarounds exist, for example, MIUI 14 still allows you to format the card as an internal memory (Adoptable Storage), but this method leads to encryption of the card and its binding to the device, once extracted, the data will not be available on other gadgets, and it is worth considering that Xiaomi blocks the transfer of system applications (for example, com.miui.gallery or com.android.phone) even through ADB.

Method 1: Official transfer via MIUI settings (no root)

This is the simplest method, but it only works for some applications. Supports programs that the developer has marked as “portable” (for example, VK, Yandex.Maps, some games), System utilities and instant messengers (such as Telegram or WhatsApp) can not be transferred.

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select an app from a list (like Google Maps).
3. Slip on Warehouse.
4. If the option is available, the Change → button will appear, select Memory Card.
5. Confirm the transfer and wait until it is completed (may take up to 5 minutes for larger applications).

⚠️ Note: After the update is transferred, the applications will be downloaded to the internal memory, not to the card. To fix this, repeat the transfer procedure after each update.

Insert memory card (minimum 10 GB free)| Format the card in FAT32/exFAT| Close the portable application |Connect charging (process consumes up to 15% of the battery)

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Method 2: Formatting a card as an internal memory (Adoptable Storage)

This method tricks the system into thinking of microSD as part of the internal drive, and it has the advantage that any application (except the system) can be ported without restrictions.

• 🔐 The card is encrypted and tied to the device - after extraction, the data will be unavailable on a PC or other smartphone.
• ⚡ Application speeds will drop by 20 to 40 percent (depending on the card class.
• 📵 When you remove the map, the applications on it will stop working until re-inserted.

Instructions:

1. Put the memory card in the smartphone.
2. Go to Settings → Storage → Memory Map.
3. Slip on the three dots in the upper right corner → Storage settings.
4. Select Format as Internal → Clean and Format.
5. After formatting, restart the device.

Now, when you port applications (see Method 1), the card will be displayed as part of the internal memory. To return everything back, reset the settings or format the card on your PC.

Method 3: Transfer over ADB (for power users)

If the application is not portable through the settings, but supports installation on SD, You can use Android Debug Bridge (ADB). This method works for MIUI 14/15 It doesn't require root rights, but it does. USB-debugging and PC.

Instructions:

1. Turn it on. USB-debugging → The phone. → Version. MIUI (tap 7 times) → Go back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
2. Connect your smartphone to your PC and confirm debugging on the screen.
3. Download ADB Tools and unpack it into a folder.
4. Open the command prompt in this folder and type: adb shell pm set-install-location 2 This will cause the system to install applications on the SD by default.
5. To port a specific application (e.g. Spotify), use: adb shell pm move-package com.spotify.music Replace com.spotify.music with your application’s batch name (you can find it through App Manager).

⚠️ Note: Some applications (e.g. Google Play Store or Google Play Store) MIUI Security) will block work after the transfer. MIUI setting ADB drop off.

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If ADB Issuing a Failure Error [NOT_MOVED], So the app doesn't support portability. Try rolling it back to the factory version via adb shell pm clear com.package.name, then repeat the transfer.

Method 4: Use of third-party utilities (with root rights)

If you have root access, you can use applications like Link2SD or App2SD, which allow you to migrate even programs that MIUI blocks by creating symbolic links, but this method is risky:

• 🛡️ System integrity is violated - bootloop (looping when booting) is possible).
• 🔄 After updating MIUI Links may break and apps will stop working.
• 📉 Performance drops more than Adoptable Storage.

Instructions for Link2SD:

1. Install Link2SD from Google Play.
2. Provide root access and select the ext2/ext3 file system for the second partition on SD.
3. In the list of applications, select the desired → Create a link.
4. Check the Dalvik-cache, Library and Data → click OK.

⚠️ Warning: Do not carry system applications (com.android. or com.miui.) - this will cause the smartphone to fail, POCO Launcher, otherwise the screen will be locked.

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Third-party utilities like Link2SD are only effective on older smartphones (until 2019), and on newer models with MIUI 12+ and Android 11+, they often cause errors due to SELinux limitations.

Method 5: Transfer cache and application media files

If the app itself cannot be moved, you can free up space by moving its cache and downloaded files, which works for instant messengers (Telegram, Viber), maps (Google Maps, 2GIS) and streaming services (Spotify, YouTube Music).

Instructions:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select an app (like Google Chrome) → Storage.
3. Tap Clear cache (this is safe, data will not be deleted).
4. For media files (e.g. in Telegram): open the messenger settings → Memory and data → specify the path to the memory card manually.

To automatically transfer media files, use Files by Google:

1. Install Files by Google.
2. Open the Cleanup tab. → Large files.
3. Select unnecessary files (e.g. uploaded videos from WhatsApp) → Move it to SD-map.

💡 Tip: For Google Photos, set up automatic uploads of photos to the cloud and then delete local copies. This will free up gigabytes of memory without losing photos.

Frequent mistakes and their solutions

When transferring applications to a memory card, Xiaomi users face typical problems, and consider the most common and ways to eliminate them:

⚠️ Warning: If the app stops updating on Google Play after you move it to the map, delete it and reinstall it, and then select the internal memory as the place of installation, and then manually transfer the data to the Google Play. SD File Manager via File Manager.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions