How to Free Up Your iCloud Space on Xiaomi: A Complete Guide with Proven Methods

Are you the owner of Xiaomi and suddenly discovered that iCloud is crowded even though you have never used Apple?This situation is familiar to many - despite the fact that Xiaomi runs on Android, some applications (especially messengers or cloud services) can sync with iCloud through third-party accounts. Moreover, if you used an iPhone before and now switched to Redmi or POCO, old backups could stay in the cloud, taking up precious gigabytes.

In this article, we’ll look at 7 proven ways to free up space in iCloud directly from a Xiaomi device, from basic actions to hidden settings. You’ll learn how to delete unnecessary data, optimize photo storage, and even migrate some files to alternative clouds (Mi Cloud, Google Drive).

Before you get started, check if the problem is really in iCloud, not Xiaomi’s local storage. Go to Settings → Memory and compare the occupied space to the data in your Apple ID account (if it’s tied).

1. Check iCloud Connection on Xiaomi: Why is it Possible?

At first glance, it seems impossible to connect Xiaomi (with Android) and iCloud (with Apple), but there are three common scenarios in which your smartphone can interact with the Apple cloud:

• 📱 When migrating through apps like Move to iOS or Smart Switch, some files (contacts, photos) may have remained tied to iCloud.
• 🔄 Sync through third-party apps: Messengers (WhatsApp, Telegram) or cloud services (Dropbox) sometimes use Apple ID authorization.
• 📧 Mail and Contacts: If your email is registered as @icloud.com and added to the Settings → Accounts, the system can automatically synchronize data.

To make sure you have a connection to iCloud, follow the following steps:

1. Open Settings → Accounts and Synchronization.
2. Check the list of added accounts for Apple ID or iCloud.
3. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management and find programs with access to Contacts or Storage – among them may be bridges to iCloud.

Important! If you don't find any obvious traces of iCloud, but the memory is still running out, the problem may be in the Mi Cloud or the app cache, so move on to the alternative cloud section.

2.Remove iCloud backups from Xiaomi phone

Backups are the main memory eater in iCloud. Even if you haven’t used an iPhone for a long time, old backups can take up to 5-10 GB. Unfortunately, you can’t remove them directly from Xiaomi, but there are workarounds:

Turn off Wi-Fi on Xiaomi to avoid automatic sync |

Visit iCloud.com from your browser (Chrome or Safari recommended)|

Sign in to your Apple ID|

Go to the "Store Management" section-->

Instructions for removal:

1. Open your browser on Xiaomi and go to iCloud.com.
2. Enter your Apple ID (if you don’t remember your password, restore it via iforgot.apple.com).
3. Select Storage Management → Backups.
4. Click on an unnecessary copy (like from an old iPhone) and select Delete Backup.

Attention! If you delete the backup of your iPhone that you are still using, the new data will no longer be stored in the cloud, and it is recommended that you pre-create a local copy on your computer via iTunes or Finder.

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If you don’t have access to your iPhone but need to make room, try temporarily installing an iOS emulator on a PC (like an iPadian) and logging into iCloud through it, allowing you to manage storage without an Apple device.

3. Optimize photos and videos in iCloud

Photos and videos take up 60 percent of iCloud memory for the average user. On Xiaomi, you won’t be able to directly manage iCloud Photos, but there are indirect methods:

• 📸 Disable sync: If your photos are automatically uploaded to iCloud via third-party apps (e.g. Google Photos with Apple binding) ID), Turn off this option in the application settings.
• 🔄 Transfer to Mi Cloud: Upload photos to Xiaomi cloud (Settings) → Mi Account. → Mi Cloud → Photos), then delete them from iCloud via the web version.
• 🗑️ Remove duplicates: Use apps like Files by Google or CCleaner to find and remove duplicate photos on your device that may be duplicated in the cloud.

You will need an iOS device to have full control of iCloud Photos, but if you don’t have one, follow these steps on Xiaomi:

1. Download all photos from iCloud to your phone via your browser (Section Photos on iCloud.com).
2. Save them to the Gallery or Google Photos.
3. Remove the originals from iCloud via the web interface.

Warning! If you use iPhone Storage Optimization (storing originals in the cloud), deleting photos from iCloud will cause them to disappear on your Apple device. Before mass deletion, make sure all files are copied.

4. Clearing contacts, calendars and notes

Synchronized contacts, calendars, and notes take up little space (usually 100-500 MB), but their accumulation over the years can be a noticeable problem. At Xiaomi, this data can be duplicated due to simultaneous synchronization with iCloud and Google Account.

To clear unnecessary data:

1. Go to Settings → Accounts and Synchronization.
2. Find an iCloud account (or Apple ID) and turn off sync for Contacts, Calendars, and Notes.
3. Remove duplicate contacts using the Contacts app (More → Contact Management → Combine Duplicates).
4. Go to iCloud.com and manually delete outdated entries in the Contacts and Calendar sections.

Example: If you switched from iPhone to Xiaomi 3 years ago, iCloud could have left contacts of former colleagues or old reminders, and deleting them would free up to 200-300 MB.

5. Transfer data to alternative clouds: Mi Cloud and Google Drive

If iCloud is crowded, the logical solution is to move some of the data to other cloud services, Xiaomi has its own solution, Mi Cloud, and the universal Google Drive.

Instructions for data perenos from iCloud to Mi Cloud:

1. Download all the necessary files from iCloud.com to Xiaomi.
2. Open your Settings → Mi Account → Mi Cloud
3. Enable synchronization for the desired categories (Contacts, Photos, Notes).
4. Upload the downloaded files to the relevant Mi Cloud sections.

When transferring photos from iCloud to Google Photos, please note that Google compresses images if they exceed 16 MP. Use Mi Cloud or pay for advanced storage on Google One to maintain original quality.

6. Removing unnecessary applications and their data from iCloud

Many apps (like WhatsApp, Viber, or games) store data in iCloud even if you haven’t used it for a long time. On Xiaomi, this data is not visible, but it can be deleted via the web interface:

• 🎮 Game saves: Take from 100MB to 1GB (e.g. Clash of Clans or Clash of Clans) PUBG Mobile).
• 💬 Messengers: Backups of chats in WhatsApp or Telegram can weigh up to 2-3 GB.
• 📊 Documents: Files from Pages, Numbers or Keynote if you have ever used iWork.

To clear this data:

1. Go to iCloud.com and log in.
2. Go to Storage Management → Applications.
3. Select the unnecessary application and click Delete Data.
4. For instant messengers (such as WhatsApp), disable backup in iCloud in the settings of the app itself on Xiaomi.

Example: If you haven’t played Clash Royale in a long time but your account is tied to Game Center, deleting game data from iCloud will free up ~300MB.

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Check the Apps section of iCloud regularly (every 3-6 months) for outdated data, and many services continue to store information even after the application is removed from the device.

7. Purchase of additional space or switch to another tariff

If all cleaning methods are exhausted, but there is still not enough space in iCloud, consider buying an additional volume. Apple offers the following rates (for 2026):

To buy an extra seat:

1. Go to iCloud.com or Settings → [Your name] → iCloud → Storage Management (if you have access to an iOS device).
2. Click Buy additional space or Change storage plan.
3. Choose the right rate and pay it (you will need a tied card or an Apple ID with a positive balance).

Alternative: If you don't want to pay for iCloud, consider switching to Google One (100GB for 139) ₽/Mi Cloud Premium (200 GB for 99) ₽/These services are better integrated with Xiaomi and offer additional features (e.g., advanced support for Google Photos or Mi). AI).

FAQ: Frequent questions about iCloud on Xiaomi