How to clean Xiaomi smartphone from garbage and unnecessary files: the complete guide

Your Xiaomi has started to slow down and your memory ends after installing a couple of apps? This is a classic situation that every second owner of Android smartphones faces. Even models with 128 GB and 256 GB of memory after a year or two of use are clogged with unnecessary files: remnants of deleted applications, cache, duplicate photos and “junk” data from MIUI. Unlike the iPhone, where the system itself manages memory, Android requires periodic manual cleaning – especially on Xiaomi devices where the proprietary shell actively caches data.

In this article you will find 7 proven ways to clean your smartphone – from standard tools MIUI We will discuss how to safely delete unnecessary files without losing important data, which folders can be manually cleaned, and why you should not blindly trust the “optimizers” from Google Play. MIUI, All methods have been tested on Redmi Note 12 Pro models.+, POCO X5 Pro and Xiaomi 13T s MIUI 14 and HyperOS.

1. Built-in tools MIUI: what can be cleaned without risk

To start with, the most obvious is the standard cleaning features in MIUI, which the manufacturer has put in a few utilities that help to free up space, but many users neglect them, while using these tools correctly can bring back up to 3-5 GB of memory without installing third-party applications.

The main entry points:

• 🧹 Waste cleaning: Settings → The phone. → Memory. → Clean it up. Here, the system analyzes the cache of applications, temporary files and residues of deleted programs. On average, it frees up 500 MB-1.5 GB.
• 📁 File Management: Files application (Folder icon) → Cleanup section: Shows large files, duplicates and unused files APK.
• 🔄 System optimization: Settings → Special opportunities → Optimizes. Removes background processes, but memory is not affected very well.

An important caveat: do not clear the cache of system applications (for example, com.miui.home or com.android.systemui) through the All applications menu. This can cause MIUI to malfunction. For safe cleaning, only use the Memory section in the settings.

⚠️ Attention: If after cleaning through Settings → Your phone’s memory is running slower, restart it. MIUI Sometimes incorrectly recalculates the free space after mass deletion of files.

2. Manual cleaning: which folders can be manually removed

Xiaomi’s internal memory contains dozens of hidden folders, many of which can be safely cleaned. The main rule is: do not delete files with.db,.odex or.apk extensions unless you are sure of their purpose.

To access these folders, use any file manager (such as Mi File Manager or Solid Explorer). To see hidden files, turn on the option to Show hidden files in the manager settings.

Pay special attention to the MIUI/extra folder, where Xiaomi stores duplicates of wallpaper, themes and fonts you've ever installed. Even after changing the theme, the old files remain in this folder, and you can safely delete all the content except the current active theme (its path usually contains the word current).

3. Cleaning the cache of applications: what can be deleted and what can not

App caches are temporary files that speed up programs, but they grow to giant sizes over time, such as Telegram cache can take 5-10 GB, and Google Play Services can take up to 1 GB. But you need to clean the cache wisely: some applications will take longer to load or require re-authorization.

How to clean the cache correctly:

• 📱 For individual applications: Settings → Annexes → Select an application → Warehouse → Clear the cache.
• 🧹 Mass cleaning: Settings → Memory. → Cash app. → Clean (releases 1-3 GB).
• 🚫 Do not touch the cache of system applications (com.android...) if you do not know their purpose.

Applications that can be easily cleaned (data will not be affected):

• 📷 Gallery, Google Photos (sketch)
• 🎵 Spotify, YouTube Music (cached tracks)
• 🗺️ Google Maps, Yandex.Maps (offline maps)
• 💬 Telegram, WhatsApp (media files from chats)

⚠️ Attention: Clearing the Google Play Services cache may cause Google account sync errors. If Gmail or Google Drive notifications stop coming after cleaning, restart your phone and check your account sync settings.

4.Removing duplicate photos and videos: a hidden problem Xiaomi

One of the most annoying features of Xiaomi is the automatic creation of duplicate media files, which is due to the work of two galleries: the standard MIUI Gallery and Google Photos. In addition, some models (Redmi Note 11, POCO F4) store video thumbnails in a separate folder that can weigh up to 2 GB.

How to find and remove duplicates:

1. Use the Files by Google app: it has a built-in duplicate search tool (Clean up → Duplicate Files).
2. Turn off auto-save in messengers: in WhatsApp and Telegram, disable the option Auto-download media in chat settings.

For advanced users: If you have root access, use SD Maid to find duplicates by checksum (MD5).

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Before mass deletion of duplicates, back up important photos on your PC or in the cloud. Sometimes algorithms define duplicate files with similar names but different contents (for example, photos with the same time stamp, but different angles) as duplicates.

5. System garbage cleanup: hidden files and update residues

MIUI It is known for keeping its tails, old firmware, log files and temporary folders, which can take up to 3 to 5 GB, but are not displayed in standard cleaning tools, and you will need a root file manager to find them. ADB-team.

Where to look for system debris:

• 📦 Remains of updates: folder /data/ota_package (Here are stored downloaded but not installed firmware).
• 📜 Log files: /data/log and /data/anr (error-report).
• 🔄 Cash updates: /cache (Recovery is required through recovery).

For root-free cleaning:

1. Connect your phone to your PC and use it ADB-Adb shell pm trim-caches 256m (This will clear the cache of all applications, limiting its size to 256 MB).
2. To remove old firmware, enter: adb shell rm -rf /data/ota_package/*

⚠️ Note: Do not delete files in folders /system or /vendor It can lead to a device blink (completely inoperable). If in doubt, you'd better leave the files in place.

6. Third-party utilities: which apps really help

Google Play has hundreds of cleaners and optimizers, and 90 percent of them are either useless or harmful, and many of these apps themselves become a source of trash, showing false warnings about "critical bugs," and we tested 15 popular utilities and selected those that actually work on Xiaomi:

Our choice is SD Maid. It's one of the few apps that actually finds and removes the remnants of uninstalled programs (folders in /data/data).

1. Run the storage analysis.
2. Go to CorpseFinder, where you can see the remnants of remote applications.
3. Delete everything except files marked [System].

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Do not install "cleaners" with aggressive advertising (such as Clean Master or DU Speed Booster).They often collect user data and can slow down the phone due to background processes.

7. Prevention: How to prevent memory clogging

Cleaning regularly is good, but it’s best to keep your memory from clogging. Here are some habits to help keep Xiaomi in order:

• 📱 Turn off autoload media in instant messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber).
• 🔄 Set up automatic cleaning in Google Photos: Settings → Make room.
• 🚫 Don’t use optimizers like 360 Security or Avast Cleanup, they create more problems than they solve.
• 📁 Move files to your PC or cloud regularly (e.g. Google Drive or Mi Cloud).
• 🔍 Check your memory once a month through Settings → Memory.

If you install and delete games frequently, consider a memory card option. Xiaomi models with a hybrid slot (like the Redmi Note 12) can use a microSD of up to 1TB as internal memory (the Adoptable Storage feature).

FAQ: Frequent questions about Xiaomi cleanup