How to Clean Memory on Xiaomi Phone: A Complete 2026 Guide

Your Xiaomi (whether it’s Redmi Note 12, POCO X5 or flagship Xiaomi 14) has become slow, and the “Memory is full” notification appears every day? The problem is familiar to most MIUI users – the operating shell from Xiaomi is known for its “voracious” attitude to internal storage. Even on devices with 128 GB or 256 GB, memory mysteriously “disappears”, and standard cleaning tools often do not work efficiently enough.

In this article, we will discuss 10 proven ways to free up space on Xiaomi, including hidden MIUI features, manual cleaning of system files and secure removal of unnecessary data. Particular attention will be paid to the unique “chips” of Xiaomi firmware that you will not find on pure Android – for example, how to remove duplicate photos through the Gallery or disable automatic backup in the Mi Cloud. All methods are tested on current versions of MIUI 14/15 (2026) and are suitable for most models of the brand.

Before you start, check how much memory is occupied: go to Settings → About Phone → Storage. If the graph shows that the System takes 30+ GB, that’s the norm for MIUI (especially after upgrades), but the rest of the categories can be optimized. Let’s start with the easiest and safest ways, and then move on to heavy artillery.

1. Built-in memory cleanup in MIUI: what deletes and what is missing

The most obvious way is to use the built-in Cleanup tool (the broomstick icon in the Settings menu → Storage) and remove:

• 🗑️ Application cache (temporary files that accumulate when using social networks, instant messengers, games).
• 📁 Unnecessary APK (residues from installed and remote applications).
• 📥 Downloads (files from the Download folder that have not been opened for more than 30 days).
• 🗃️ Duplicate files (newer versions MIUI 14+ only).

However, this tool has critical limitations:

• ❌ Does not clear the cache of system applications (e.g. Mi Video or Mi Browser).
• ❌ Does not delete residual files after uninstallation of programs (they remain in the /data/data folder).
• ❌ Ignores hidden folders like.thumbnails (miniatures of images that can weigh gigabytes).

How to use the built-in cleaning correctly:

1. Open the Settings → Storage → Cleaning.
2. Click Scan and wait until it is completed (may take 1-3 minutes).
3. In the Recommendations section, mark all items except the Journals (deleting them may disrupt some functions).
4. Click Clean and confirm the action.

⚠️ Warning: If less than 1GB of memory is free after cleaning, then the problem is deeper – move on to the following methods.

2. Manual removal of cache applications: which can be cleaned without risk

The app cache is the main memory eater on Xiaomi, for example, Telegram can accumulate 5-10 GB of cache per year, and TikTok can accumulate up to 2-3 GB per month. Unlike built-in cleaning, the manual method allows you to control what data to delete.

How to clean the cache manually:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select an app (such as YouTube or Facebook).
3. Press Warehouse. → Clear the cache.

Which apps to clean first (in descending priority):

Don't clear the cache for:

• 🔒 System applications (Settings, Phone, Messages) – this can cause crashes.
• 🎮 Games (e.g. Genshin Impact or PUBG Mobile) – The cache contains game resources and removing it will cause the game to download them again (up to 10 GB of traffic!).

3. Removal of duplicate photos and video files

MIUI has a built-in tool for finding duplicates, but it doesn't work perfectly.

• 📸 Similar photos (taken within seconds of each other)
• 🎥 Screenshots with the same content but different resolution.
• 📂 Copies of files in different folders (e.g., DCIM/Camera and Pictures/Screenshots).

How to find and remove duplicates:

1. Open the Gallery → Click on three dots in the upper right corner → Control → Duplicates.
2. The app will scan the photos and suggest options, and check carefully — sometimes it makes a mistake by suggesting that you delete unique photos.
3. For deep cleaning, use third-party apps like Files by Google or CCleaner (they find up to 30% more duplicates than a standard Gallery).

If there are no duplicates, but the memory is still occupied with photos, check:

• 🗃️ Folder DCIM/.thumbnails – This is where you store thumbnails of images (can weigh up to 1–2 GB) that can be manually removed through any file manager (such as Mi File Manager), but the previews in the Gallery will take longer to download.
• 📤 Folder Pictures/Screenshots – Screenshots take up a lot of space, especially if you often take long screens (up to 5–10MB per piece).

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Before mass deletion, turn on hidden files in Mi File Manager: Settings → Show hidden files. So you don’t miss folders like.trash or.nomedia, which also take up space.

4. Clean Download folder and temporary files

The Download folder is a black hole for memory.

• 📄 Documents from Telegram/WhatsApp.
• 🎵 Music and videos from VK or YouTube (if you downloaded through your browser).
• 📦 Archives (.zip,.rar) after unpacking.
• 📱 APK- files of installed applications.

How to clean Download:

1. Open Mi File Manager → go to Internal Memory → Download.
2. Sort files by Change Date or Size (click on three dots → Sort).
3. Delete anything older than 6 months (if you are not sure you need a file, transfer it to your PC or cloud).

Also check the temporary folders:

⚠️ Warning: Don't manually delete the Android/data folder, it will cause installed applications to fail. Use only specialized utilities like SD Maid to clean it.

5. Disable automatic backup in Mi Cloud

Xiaomi aggressively backs up data in Mi Cloud, even if you didn't consent to it.

• 📱 Contacts and SMS.
• 📸 Photos (automatic upload to Mi Cloud Gallery)
• 🎵 Recordings from the recorder and notes.
• 📱 System settings (themes, wallpaper, Wi-Fi settings).

How to disable unnecessary reservations:

1. Go to Settings → Xiaomi Account → Mi Cloud.
2. Open Device Backup and turn off sliders for unnecessary categories (such as Notes or Calls).
3. In the Gallery section, click Synchronization Settings and select Not Sync.
4. Remove old backups: Mi Cloud → Backups → Delete.

If you do not use Mi Cloud at all, you can disable the service completely:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find Mi Cloud and click Disable (Do Not Delete!).
3. Revoke Warehouse and Contact Permits.

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Disabling Mi Cloud will not delete backups you have already created – you need to manually erase them via cloud.mi.com.

6. System garbage disposal via ADB (for advanced users)

If standard methods didn't work, and the memory is still busy, it's time for a deep cleaning through ADB.

• 🗑️ Residual files after deleting applications.
• 📦 Update cache MIUI (can weigh up to 3–5 GB).
• 📂 Unnecessary system folders (e.g., /data/log).

Instructions for Windows:

1. Download ADB Tools and unpack it into the C:\adb folder.
2. On the phone, turn on Developer Mode (go to Settings → About Phone and 7 times click on the MIUI version).
3. Return to Settings → Additional → For developers and enable USB debugging.
4. Connect your phone to your PC, open the Command Prompt in the adb folder and type:

adb devices


adb shell pm trim-caches 1000G




adb shell rm -rf /data/local/tmp/*




adb shell rm -rf /cache/*

Once you have completed the commands, restart your phone, which frees up to 2-7 GB of memory, but has risks:

⚠️ Warning: Misuse of ADB can cause data loss or system failure. Do not execute commands unless you are sure of their purpose. For example, rm -rf /data/data will delete all user applications!

7. Transfer applications to a memory card (if supported)

Many Xiaomi models (especially the budget Redmi and POCO) support microSD cards up to 1 TB. However, MIUI limits application portability - not all programs can be moved to the SD- card.

Method 1: Through phone settings

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select an app (e.g. Facebook) → Storage → Change.
3. If the Memory Card option is active, select it and confirm the transfer.

Method 2: Formatting SD-maps as internal storage

This method allows the memory card to be used as part of the phone’s main memory, but has critical drawbacks:

• ❌ The card will be encrypted and will not be read on other devices.
• ❌ When you remove the map, some applications will stop working.
• ❌ Application speeds from the SD- card are lower than those from internal memory.

How to format a SD- card as an internal storage:

1. Put the memory card in the phone.
2. Go to Settings → Storage → Memory Map.
3. Click on three dots → Storage settings → Format as internal.
4. Confirm the action (all data on the map will be deleted!).

Once formatted, the phone will suggest transferring some of the data to the map. Choose Move now, but remember:

⚠️ Warning: Don't put system applications and games on the SD- map, it will lead to lags and errors. It's optimal to store only media files and lightweight utilities on the map.

8.Reset to factory settings: when justified

Hard Reset is a last resort, but sometimes the only one that helps to get the phone back to its original state.

• ✅ All user junk (cache, temporary files, application residues) will be removed.
• ✅ The initial speed will return (if the lags were caused by a filled memory).
• ✅ System errors associated with corrupted files will disappear.

How to do the reset correctly:

1. Back up important data (contacts, photos, messages) through Mi Cloud or manually on your PC.
2. Go to Settings → About the phone → Reset settings.
3. Choose to erase all data and confirm the action.
4. After the reboot, the phone will be like new – it will only be necessary to restore data from the backup.

When you should not do a reset:

• 🚫 If the phone is unlocked (for example, via Fastboot), Mi Account protection may be activated after the reset.
• 🚫 If you do not backup, the data will be lost irretrievably.
• 🚫 If the problem is a physical memory failure (the phone will also slow down after resetting).

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After resetting the first 2-3 days, the phone can run slower than usual, which is normal, and the system is optimized for your actions (install applications, setups, etc.).

FAQ: Frequent questions about memory cleanup on Xiaomi