How to Free Memory on Xiaomi Redmi 9C: From Simple to Complex

Why Redmi 9C is running out of memory and what to do about it

Xiaomi Redmi 9C is a budget smartphone with 32 or 64 GB of internal memory, of which the user is available 5-10 GB less due to the preinstalled MIUI firmware. Even with careful use after 2-3 months, many people face a notification “Not enough memory”, and applications begin to slow down or completely refuse to update. What is the reason?

The main memory eaters on Redmi 9C are app cache (especially social networks and instant messengers), duplicate photos/video, residual files after uninstallation of programs, as well as system debris, which MIUI does not always clean automatically. This is added to firmware updates (weighing up to 2 GB) and the cache of games like Free Fire or PUBG Mobile, which can grow to 3-5 GB.

In this article — 10 working ways to free memory, from basic (cache removal) to advanced (transfer applications to the computer) SD-All methods tested on Redmi 9C s MIUI 12/13 and relevant to Redmi models 9A/9T similarly-architectured.

1.Cleaning App Cache Is A Quick Way To Free Up 1-3GB

Cache is a temporary file that apps save to make things faster, like Instagram caches Stories, YouTube caches video previews, and games previews textures and levels, and over time, the cache grows to hundreds of megabytes, or gigabytes, but it can be safely deleted without losing any important data.

How to clear the cache on Redmi 9C:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Slip on the three dots in the top right corner and select "Sort by size."
3. Select the app (start with the heaviest ones – Facebook, TikTok, Google Play Services).
4. Click Clear Cache (Do not click Clear Data – this will delete accounts and settings!).

• 📱 Top.-5 Apps with the largest cache on Redmi 9C: Facebook - before 1.5 GB TikTok - up to 1 Google Play Services GB — 500 MB–1 YouTube GB — 300–800 WhatsApp MBT — 200–500 MB (if there is a lot of media)

⚠️ Warning: Do not clear the cache of system applications like com.android.systemui or com.miui.home, which can cause interface failures. If you are not sure that the application is safe to clean, skip it.

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After cleaning the cache, restart the smartphone - this will help MIUI correctly recalculate the free space.

2. Delete unnecessary files through the “Cleanup” in MIUI

MIUI has a built-in garbage collection and disposal tool called Cleanup (formerly Security) that finds residual files, duplicates, large files and unused APKs. Here's how to use it effectively:

Instructions:

1. Open the Cleanup app (icon with broomstick).
2. Click on “Deep Clean” → “Scan”.
3. After analysis, select the categories to remove: 🗑️ Garbage files – temporary data, logs, empty folders. 📁 Duplicate files – photo/video copies (check manually!). 📦 Large files – videos, archives, unused files APK. 🔄 Residual files – data from remote applications.

Clean up

⚠️ Note: If you see files with the.obb extension (e.g. com.tencent.ig.obb) in the Big Files section, this is game data. Only delete them if you no longer play this game, otherwise it will stop working.

3. Transfer of applications and data to SD-map

Redmi 9C It supports microSD cards up to 512GB, but not all applications can be migrated to it. SD-map:

Modes of transfer:

1. Through the App Settings: Go to Settings → Annexes → Application management. Select the application. → «Warehouse» → «Change» → specify SD-map. ⚠️ Note: Not all apps support portability, such as WhatsApp, Telegram and most games won’t give this option.
2. Manual file transfer: Connect your smartphone to your PC or use a file manager (such as Mi File Manager (DCIM), Video (Movies), Music (Music) and Download (Download) SD-map.
3. Default save setting: In camera: Camera settings → Storage → Memory Map. On WhatsApp: Settings → Storage → Save media to a memory card.

Photos and videos|Music and podcasts|Documents (PDF, Word)|Downloads from the browser|Backup copies (if not encrypted)-->

Important for Redmi. 9C: If you use SD-card as internal memory (the option "Format as internal drive"), note that after its extraction applications will stop working.

4. Removal of pre-installed applications (bloatware)

MIUI on Redmi 9C comes with a dozen pre-installed apps that can't be removed by standard means: Mi Browser, Mi Music, Mi Video, GetApps, and others. They take up space and run in the background, using resources. Here's how to get rid of them:

Methods of disposal:

• 🔧 Through ADB (without root: Enable Settings → The phone. → Version. MIUI (slip 7 once to activate the developer mode. → Additionally. → For developers and include “Debugging by” USB». Connect your phone to your PC, install it. ADB Tools and execute the command: adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.mi.android.globalFileexplorer (replace com.mi.android.globalFileexplorer with the desired application package).

Through the uninstallator (from root):

If you have root rights, use applications like Titanium Backup or System App Remover, which allow you to remove system APKs without consequences.

⚠️ Warning: Removing system applications may cause crashes MIUI. Do not delete: com.android.settings (Settings) com.miui.home (Luncher) com.android.phone (Phone)

5. Optimization of photo and video storage

Photos and video are the main memory eaters. On the Redmi 9C with a 13MP camera, one JPEG photo weighs 3-5 MB, and a minute of video in Full HD weighs up to 100 MB.

Savings:

• 📸 Reduce camera resolution: Open the camera → Settings → Photo resolution and select 9 MP instead of 13 MP. For video: Full HD (30 fps instead of Full HD (60 fps).
• ☁️ Enable backup to the cloud: Google Photos: Automatic upload photos in "High Quality" (unlimited storage). Mi Cloud: 5GB free, but syncs only contacts and notes.
• 🗃️ Convert the video to HEVC (H.265): Format HEVC It compresses video 2 times without losing quality. Use applications like Video Compress or HandBrake.

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Use HEIF for photos and HEVC for videos, which will reduce your space by 30-50% without any visible loss of quality.

6. Resetting to factory settings is a last resort

If all of the above methods didn’t work and the Redmi 9C has less than 1GB of free space, you’ll have to do a hard reset, which will delete all data, including apps, photos and accounts, so back up first.

How to reset Redmi 9C:

1. Backup: Photos/video – copy to PC or cloud. Contacts – sync with Google Account. Messages – export via SMS Backup & Restore.
2. Reset: Go to Settings → About Phone → Settings Reset. Select “Erase All Data” and confirm.
3. After reset: Don't restore the backup through MIUI, it will return the garbage. Install applications selectively. Turn off automatic download of media in instant messengers.

⚠️ Attention: On Redmi 9C s MIUI 12/13 After the reset, you may experience an error in activating Mi Account. To avoid it, untie your account in Settings before the reset. → Xiaomi account → Get out.

7.Alternative methods: disabling updates and using Lite-applications

If memory is critically small, but you do not want to reset your smartphone, try these methods:

• 🚫 Turn off automatic app updates: In Google Play: Settings → Auto-update of applications → Never, updates. MIUI turn off the settings → The phone. → Updating the system → Three points. → Settings → Auto-downloading updates.
• 📱 Install Lite versions of apps: Normal Lite version of Facebook Lite memory saving app ~200 MB Messenger Lite ~150MB Twitter Lite ~100MB
• 🔄 Use streaming instead of downloading: Spotify/YouTube Music disable downloads of songs for offline listening. On Netflix, select "Wi-Fi Only" and "Low Quality».

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If you need maps offline (for example, in Google Maps or Yandex.Navigator), download only the necessary regions, not the entire country.

FAQ: Frequent questions about memory release on Redmi 9C