How to clean up memory on Xiaomi: 7 proven ways

Xiaomi and Redmi are famous for their excellent price-to-performance ratio, but over time, even powerful devices start to slow down. The main reason for the performance decline is that internal storage is filled with system debris, app cache and duplicate files. When the occupancy indicator is lit red, the MIUI or HyperOS operating system is unstable, and it takes forever to launch programs.

In this article, we'll look at seven of the most effective ways to free up gigabytes of space in just a few minutes. You don't have to be a technician to do this. We'll look at both the standard tools built into the shell and the manual methods that will help you remove what's normally hidden from the user's eyes.

Freeing up disk space is not only a way to speed up the gadget, but also to extend its life. Overflowing memory puts an excessive burden on the controllers and the processor, forcing them to work in stress mode. Regular memory cleaning will be an excellent prevention of sudden freezes and reboots.

Analysis of vault occupancy

Before you start deleting files, you need to understand what takes up the lion's share of the volume. Modern versions of Xiaomi firmware have a powerful analyzer built in that visualizes data. Go to the settings and select About phone, then click on Storage. The system will show a detailed file distribution diagram.

Users are often surprised to find that most of the space is occupied not by photos, but by messengers like Telegram or WhatsApp, which store all the videos and images viewed in cache, which eventually grows to tens of gigabytes, and a significant amount can be occupied by the “Other” folder, which stores temporary update files and remnants of remote programs.

It's important to pay attention to the size of the system data. If the System partition takes up a disproportionate amount of space, it may indicate the presence of old update files or error logs, and analysis of the storage helps identify such space eaters and point to remove unnecessary ones without affecting important documents.

Use of the built-in Security application

The easiest and safest way to clean up your system is to use the standard Security app, which is pre-installed on every Xiaomi device.It contains the Cleanup module, which automatically scans the device for temporary files, residual debris and unused items. APK-file.

Launch the app and click the large green Clean button, and the system will prompt you to delete files that do not affect the smartphone, but be careful: before confirming the action, you should click the “Details” button to make sure that you do not accidentally plan to delete important downloads or screenshots.

⚠️ Note: The Security app has a Deep Clean feature, which you can use with caution, as it may suggest that you delete files you created yourself, considering them duplicates or garbage.

For a more subtle setup, go to the Cleanup section inside the app and select the Files tab. Here you can sort objects by size or date. The in-house cleaner does a good job of basic tasks, but for deep analysis of the cache of specific applications, it is better to use the manual methods described below.

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Run a standard cleaning service through the Security app every 2-3 days to prevent large amounts of temporary debris from accumulating.

Manually cleaning the app cache

Automatic cleaners often don't get to the deep cache layers of popular social networks and browsers. To clean up memory as efficiently as possible, you need to go to the settings of each heavy app separately, which is especially true for YouTube, Instagram and navigators.

The sequence of actions is as follows:

• 📱 Open your smartphone settings and go to the "Apps" section».
• 📱 Select “All Apps” and find the program you want in the list (e.g. TikTok).
• 📱 Click on the line "Memory" or "Storage».
• 📱 Click the “Clean” button and select “Clear Cache».

It is important not to confuse the Clear Cache button with the Clear All button (or Reset button). If you choose the latter, the app will return to the state immediately after installation: you will lose logins, saved passwords, settings and correspondence. App cache is temporary data, its removal is safe, while reset requires reauthorization.

Removal of duplicates and large files

When using a smartphone, the gallery inevitably accumulates duplicate photos taken with poor connection or accidental re-pressing of the shutter button, and users often forget about downloaded movies or archives, which can take up gigabytes. To find such objects, it is best to use the built-in file manager. MIUI or File Manager.

Open the Explorer app and select the Categories or Analyzer tab, and the system automatically sorts files by video, music, documents, installation packages, and pay special attention to Download, which often contains forgotten files from the browser.

You can use the gallery’s “Similar Photos” feature or third-party utilities to find duplicate photos, but often just look carefully at the Screenshots and Camera album. Deleting large files like 4K videos can instantly free up to 10-20 GB of space.

Cleaning up garbage in messengers

WhatsApp, Viber, and especially Telegram are the main memory eaters on modern smartphones, which automatically download all media files from chats and channels, and without setting up these applications can take up to 30-40% of all available space.

In Telegram, the cleanup is most effective through the settings of the app itself. Go to Settings -> Data and Memory -> Memory Use. Here you will see the "Storage Media" slider. Set a restriction, for example, "3 days" or "1 week." Also click "Clear Telegram cache" button. This action will not delete your correspondence, photos and videos will disappear only from the phone's memory, but will remain in the cloud and download again if you need to view.

WhatsApp is more complicated because all files are stored locally. Go to Settings -> Data and Storage -> Storage Management. You can see which chats are taking up the most space and delete media selectively. Regular cleaning of messengers is a key factor in the performance of the budget models of Redmi and Poco.

⚠️ Before mass clearing of messengers, make sure you have a backup of important documents or photos that were obtained exclusively through this communication channel and are not stored anywhere else.

Transfer data to memory card and cloud

If internal memory is overcrowded, the best solution is to transfer media files to external media. Most Xiaomi smartphones support microSD memory cards. You can reconfigure the camera so that new photos and videos are immediately saved to the card.

To do this, open the Camera app, click on the three bars in the corner of the screen, select Settings and find Save on SIM-map (or "Save on" SD-You can also move existing folders through the file manager. DCIM and Pictures on external media.

The alternative is Google Photos or Xiaomi Cloud, and once you have set up sync, you can turn on the Free Space feature, which will remove photos already stored in the cloud from your device, which allows you to keep the originals safe and only have thumbnails on your phone that take up minimal space.

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Using an SD card and cloud services is the only way to expand the available space for photos and videos indefinitely without deleting data.

Resetting settings as a radical method

When software cleaning methods fail and the system continues to run slowly, the last resort is a complete factory reset, which completely removes all user data, applications and settings, returning the phone to the “out of the box” state.

Before starting the procedure, make sure to back up all important data. Then go to Settings -> About Phone -> Reset -> Erase all data. The phone will restart and begin the cleaning process, which can take 5 to 15 minutes.

Once the reset is complete, the phone's memory will be completely cleared. Don't rush to install all the apps at once. Watch the device run clean. Often, it turns out that the brakes were caused by one particular conflict software that you might not even remember to install again.