How to quickly and safely transfer data to the new Xiaomi phone: all the ways

The transition to a new Xiaomi smartphone is always exciting, but the process of transferring data can seem difficult, especially if you are doing it for the first time. Many users lose hours manually copying photos, contacts and applications, unaware that the manufacturer has provided several convenient tools to automate this task. In this article, we will analyze all the current ways of transferring data from the branded Mi Mover to cloud services, and also explain how to avoid typical migration errors.

Xiaomi phones (including Redmi, POCO and Black Shark) are deeply integrated with the MIUI ecosystem, which means that some portability methods that work on other Android devices may have nuances here. For example, the standard Google Backup feature does not always correctly restore MIUI settings, and the Mi Mover is able to transfer even data from proprietary applications like Mi Fit or Mi Home. We tested each method on models from 2023 to 2026 (including Xiaomi 14, Redmi Note 13 Pro+ and POCO F6) and are ready to share the results.

Before you start porting, make sure that both phones are at least 50% charged – critical for cable or Mi Mover methods. Also check the free space on the new device: if you carry tens of gigabytes of photos and videos, you may need to pre-clean the memory.

1.Mi Mover is Xiaomi’s official tool for quick migration

Mi Mover is Xiaomi’s proprietary solution that allows data to be transferred directly between two phones over Wi-Fi or cable, and the main advantage of the method is support for all types of data, including MIUI settings, messages in Mi Messenger and even call history from the proprietary Phone app. However, there are limitations: both devices must work on MIUI 9 or later (relevant for 99% of models after 2017).

To use Mi Mover, follow the following steps:

• 📱 Install the Mi Mover app on both phones (if it is not on the default system). On new models, it is usually pre-installed in the Tools folder.
• 🔄 On the old phone, select Send, on the new phone, Receive. Confirm pairing via QR-code PIN.
• 📁 Select data types to transfer: contacts, messages, photos, videos, applications or system settings. Please note that applications will be reinstalled, but their data (for example, saves in games) may not be transferred.
• ⚡ Wait until the process is complete. Time depends on the amount of data: 10 GB of photos and videos can be transmitted up to 30-40 minutes.

Importantly, if you migrate data from your iPhone to Xiaomi, Mi Mover only supports contacts, photos and videos, and you will have to use alternative methods for other types of data (see the section on cloud services).

Charging both phones >50%|Shut down. VPN and traffic savings|Connect to a single Wi-Fi network (or use a mobile hotspot)|Free up space on a new phone (minimum 20% free space)-->

⚠️ Warning: If you experience a “Disconnected” error during the transfer through Mi Mover, try restarting both phones and re-pairing. Also check if the data transfer is blocked by the Surveillance Protection in the security settings. MIUI.

2. Transfer over OTG or USB-C cable for large data volumes

If you don’t have access to stable Wi-Fi or need to transfer tens of gigabytes of data (e.g. video to a mobile phone) 4K), The most reliable way is to use the cable to connect phones directly. USB-C cable will do USB-C to USB-C supportive OTG. The main plus of the method is the transfer speed (up to 480 Mbit / s against) ~50 Mbps over Wi-Fi) and no risk of connection breakdown.

Instructions for transfer via cable:

1. Connect your phones with a cable. On the screen of the old device, select File Transfer (MTP) mode.
2. On your new phone, open Files by Google or the standard MIUI File Manager.
3. In the Devices section, select the old device and copy the desired folders (DCIM for photos, Download for downloads, etc.).
4. To transfer contacts and messages, use export to.vcf (contacts) and SMS Backup & Restore (messages).

To speed up the process, you can use the PC as an intermediary: connect both phones to your computer and copy files through Windows Explorer or Android File Transfer (for Mac). SSD-storage-storage.

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If the cable is not recognized, try enabling USB Debugging in Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (7 times click on version, then go back to Additional Settings → For Developers).

3. Cloud Services: Mi Cloud, Google Drive and Alternatives

Cloud storage is a universal way to transfer data that does not require physical connection of phones. Xiaomi offers its own service Mi Cloud, but it has a limit on free storage (5 GB), so for large amounts of data better use Google Drive, Yandex Disk or Dropbox. The main disadvantage of the method is the dependence on Internet speed and the risk of loss of quality when compressing photos / videos.

Comparison of cloud services for transfer:

• ☁️ Mi Cloud: Free 5GB, automatically syncs contacts, notes and photos. Not suitable for apps and music.
• 📁 Google Drive: 15GB free, supports full phone backup via Settings → Google → Backup.
• 💾 Yandex Disk: 10 GB free, convenient for users from Russia (high download speed).
• 🔗 Dropbox: 2GB free, but there is a Camera Upload feature for auto-uploading photos.

The following steps are provided for Google Drive:

1. On an old phone, open Google Drive and click + → Download.
2. Select files or folders (for example, DCIM/Camera for photo).
3. On the new phone, log in to the same Google account and download files through My Drive.
4. To restore contacts and applications, use Settings → Google → Restore.

Mi Cloud|Google Drive|Yandex Disk|Dropbox|Other|I don't use it.-->

⚠️ Note: When uploading a photo to Google Photos in High Quality (not Original) mode, the images are compressed to 16 MP resolution. If you want to maintain original quality, choose Original Quality (but it takes up space in your cloud storage).

4.Move over Google Account: Contacts, Calendars and Apps

If you use Google services (Gmail, Calendar, Contacts), most of the data is already synced to the cloud automatically, a method ideal for transferring contacts, calendar events, Keep notes and a list of installed applications, but it is not suitable for photos, videos or files that are not associated with Google services.

To transfer data through your Google account:

1. On your old phone, check that sync is enabled: Settings → Accounts → Google → Account Sync.
2. On your new phone, add the same Google account to Settings → Accounts.
3. When you configure your new device, select Restore from Google backup.
4. Confirm the data recovery (the applications will start to install automatically).

Important: This method does not tolerate:

• 📸 Photos and videos (use Google Photos separately).
• 💬 Communications SMS/MMS (You need a separate application like this. SMS Backup & Restore).
• 🎵 Music and download files (copy manually).
• ⚙️ Settings MIUI (For example, topics or gestures of management).

5.Moving from iPhone to Xiaomi: features and life hacks

The transition from iPhone to Xiaomi requires a separate approach, since the ecosystems of iOS and Android are directly incompatible.

• 🍎 iMessage Messages (cannot be exported officially).
• 🎵 Music from Apple Music (DRM-Protection does not allow downloading tracks).
• 📱 iCloud backups (not readable on Android).

Solutions for key data types:

• 📞 Contacts: Export via iCloud.com (select contacts) → "Export vCard" and import to Google Contacts.
• 📸 Photo/Video: Use Google Photos (install on iPhone and enable autoload) or iCloud for Windows (download photos on PC, then on Xiaomi).
• 💬 Messages: Applications like iMazing or Backuptrans (paid) can export SMS in a format readable on Android.
• 🎮 Apps: Install analogues from the Play Store (the list of installed applications can be exported through the App Store) → Profile → Purchases).

To simplify the process, Xiaomi has released the Mi Mover app with iOS support, but it only works for photos, videos and contacts. To migrate the rest of the data, follow this algorithm:

1. Back up your iPhone via iTunes or Finder (Mac).
2. Use tools like iMazing to extract data from the backup.
3. Transfer files to Xiaomi via cable or cloud.

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When switching from iPhone to Xiaomi, be sure to turn off iMessage before extracting it. SIM-Otherwise, the messages may not reach the new number. → Communications → iMessage.

6. Lossless Data Transfer: What to Do with Apps and Games

One of the most painful things about changing phones is losing progress in games or settings in apps. Fortunately, most of today's apps support syncing through accounts. Here's how to save data:

For games:

• 🎮 Connect the game to Google Play Games or Facebook (in the game settings).
• 🖥️ For locally saved games (such as Minecraft), copy the folder /Android/obb or /Android/data.
• 🔄 After installing the game on your new phone, log in to the same account – progress will recover.

For applications:

• 📱 WhatsApp: Make a backup in Settings → chat → Backup and restore when you first set up on your new phone.
• 💬 Telegram: All data is stored in the cloud – just log in to your account.
• 📅 1Password/Keeppass: Export your database and import it on a new device.

For applications without cloud sync (such as some banking programs), you will have to reconfigure everything, and check in advance if the application supports data portability, which information can usually be found in the Help or FAQ section of the developer’s website.

7. Post-transfer validation and optimization

After the data transfer is complete, follow a few steps to make sure everything is working correctly:

1. Check contacts: Open the Contacts app and make sure all numbers are in place. Pay attention to duplicates – they can be combined through Settings → Combine contacts.
2. Test applications: Run key programs (messaging, banking, games) and make sure they work without errors.
3. Clear the cache: Go to Settings → Apps → App management and clear the cache for frequently used programs.
4. Set up notifications: In Settings → Notifications, check that important alerts (calls, SMS, instant messengers) are not blocked.

If the phone is slower after the transfer, it may have accumulated too many unnecessary files. Use the built-in Optimizer (Settings → Special features → Optimization) or the Security app from Xiaomi to clean up the memory.

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To speed up the new phone after transferring data, disable auto-run of unnecessary applications in Settings → Applications → Auto-Run Management.

FAQ: Frequent questions about data portability to Xiaomi