How to clean Xiaomi Redmi from garbage, photos and videos

Xiaomi Redmi smartphones are known for their performance, but even powerful processors can not compensate for the lack of free storage space. Over time, the device accumulates gigabytes of temporary files, duplicate images and app cache, which leads to a noticeable slowdown in the interface and errors when installing updates.

Cleaning up a system is not just about removing unnecessary files, it's about a complex process of maintaining internal memory, and many users are faced with a phone saying "Memory is full" even though you can't see any visually large files, because of hidden system logs and residual data from remote programs.

In this article, we’ll look at all the cleaning methods available, from built-in MIUI tools to advanced multimedia tools, learn how to safely remove garbage without touching important documents, and get your gadget back to its previous speed.

Use of the built-in "Security" application

The first and most secure tool for maintenance is the standard Security app, preinstalled on all Redmi devices, which scans the device for temporary files, application install residues, and potential threats. Running a deep clean through this tool allows you to free up from 500 MB to several gigabytes of space in a couple of minutes.

It’s important to understand the difference between cleaning the cache and cleaning the data. If the cache cleanup function only deletes temporary files, speeding up the work, then cleaning the data resets the application to the “post-installing” state, removing your logins and settings inside the programs.

To start the procedure, open the application, click on the "Clean up" button and wait for the scan to be completed. The system itself will suggest removing the debris found. However, for a more subtle setup, it is recommended to go to the "Deep Cleanup" section, where you can selectively delete old APK installation packages and large files.

⚠️ Warning: Before using Deep Cleanup, carefully check the file list. Sometimes the system will flag up downloaded documents or archives that you may still need as garbage.

Regular use of the built-in optimizer helps keep the file system in order. Don't ignore memory fill notifications, as a crowded system partition can cause the device to cyclically reboot.

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Set up automatic cleaning in the Security app so that the phone will remove the garbage itself when a certain memory filling threshold is reached.

Analysis and removal of duplicate photos and videos

The storage is dominated by multimedia files, and modern Redmi cameras are high-resolution, and one minute of 4K video can weigh hundreds of megabytes, and users often forget to delete failed shots or a series of identical shots taken in serial mode.

You can use the built-in Gallery tool to find duplicates, and the recent album or the Deleted menu often accumulates screenshots and screen recordings that have lost their relevance, and you should also look at the Screenshots folder, which grows to giant sizes over time.

• 📸 Open the Gallery and go to the Albums section to find the Video folder and delete long videos shot by chance.
• 🗑️ Use the Deleted function to permanently erase files, freeing up space (files are stored there for 30 days).
• 📂 Check the folder. DCIM/.thumbnails — It's a hidden folder with thumbnails that can take up several gigabytes.

There are also specialized visual duplicate search apps that analyze the content of the images, not just their file names.This is especially useful if you often take multiple photos of the same object to choose the best one.

Cleaning the cache of messengers and social networks

Communication apps like Telegram, WhatsApp and Viber are the main memory eaters, and they store every photo, video and voice message they see in their phone's local storage. 10-15 GB space.

Unlike the system cache, cleaning the messenger data through the Android settings will result in logging out of the account and losing the correspondence history if a backup was not made, so you need to clean the garbage files directly inside the settings of the application itself.

Telegram does this through the Settings menu → Data and memory → Memory Use → Clear cache. Here you can set up automatic deletion of media files that were downloaded more than 3 days or weeks ago. This is a critical setting for owners of devices with a small amount of internal memory.

Once the messenger cache is cleared, the chat images and videos will become invisible until the dialog is reopened, when they are downloaded again from the network, allowing you to free up space without losing access to the history of the communication.

Delete Residual Files and Android Folders

When you delete applications, Android often has folders with their settings and temporary data, which may not carry a payload, but they continue to take up space, and you can find them through the file manager by going to the root directory of the internal drive.

Special attention should be paid to folders with the names of remote games or services. Android/obb and Android/data, You need to delete the contents of these folders with caution: if you delete the game file that is installed, progress can be lost.

To safely delete, use a file manager with folder size analysis, which allows you to visually assess which directory takes up the most space, often users find forgotten downloads from the browser or old versions of system updates.

⚠️ Warning: Never delete files from system folders unless you are sure of their purpose. Deleting files can cause the interface to malfunction MIUI.

Regular file system audits are a sign of a competent user, and once a month, it's good to go through the list of installed applications and remove those you haven't used for more than six months, which not only frees up space, but also increases data security.

Working with cloud storage and synchronization

Modern approach to data storage on Xiaomi Redmi involves the active use of cloud services. Google Photos, Yandex.Disk or Mi Cloud allow you to store original photos on the Internet, leaving only compressed copies on the device or completely removing them from local memory.

The “Free Space” feature in the Google Photos app automatically removes images and videos that have already been successfully uploaded to the cloud and backed up, the fastest way to free up a few gigabytes without losing access to the archive.

Configure automatic synchronization only over Wi-Fi, so as not to waste mobile traffic. It is also recommended to check the download quality settings: storage in "Original Quality" quickly exhausts the free limit of 15 GB, while the "Save space" mode allows you to store thousands of pictures for free.

Using the cloud turns your smartphone into a terminal for accessing data, rather than a single storage, especially when buying devices with 64GB of basic memory, which is no longer enough for active users in 2026.

Radical Methods: Resetting and Formatting

If software cleaning methods fail and the system continues to slow down, you can consider a full reset to factory settings, which is guaranteed to remove all user data, applications and settings, returning the phone to the “out of the box” state.

Before performing this procedure, be sure to create a full backup of all important contacts, messages, and files. Reset via Settings menu → About phone → Resetting is the safest way.

There is also a formatting of the internal drive as an external one (USB-It is a rare procedure that can be used in specific cases of file system errors. For the average user, a standard reset is enough, which takes about a week. 10-15 minute.

• 🔄 Go to the Recovery Mode menu if the phone doesn’t load properly.
• 💾 Save important data to your computer or cloud before resetting.
• 🔋 Make sure that the battery is at least 50% before the process begins.

Once reset, the phone will run as fast as possible, because all the accumulated software debris over the years will disappear, but if you install hundreds of applications immediately and restore gigabytes of media, the problem of space shortage will return.

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Complete reset is a last resort, and only use it when other cleaning methods have failed to remove the brakes.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)