How to transfer all files from one Xiaomi phone to another: the complete guide

The transition to a new Xiaomi smartphone is always a joyous event, but the process of transferring data often turns into a headache. DCIM, Vacation videos, saved passwords in Mi Browser, notes in Notes – all this must be carefully moved without losing a byte. Unlike the iPhone, which has Quick Start, Xiaomi does not have a universal tool, but there are 5 proven ways that work on models from Redmi Note 8 to Xiaomi 14 Ultra.

Many users make the critical mistake of starting the transfer after setting up a new phone. 2 It's a time, because some of the data, like the Mi Account, will have to be synced again, and others will have to copy files over Bluetooth for years, spending hours on transferring several gigabytes. MIUI 14/15, including bypassing locks and optimizing speed.

If you have both phones on MIUI (Even the different versions, it's only going to take 15 minutes, and the key is to choose the right way depending on the amount of data and the availability of additional devices. OTG, a) for contacts and SMS — Mi Cloud. We'll break down each option with step-by-step screenshots, warnings about typical errors and life hacks to speed up.

1.Preparation for transfer: what to do before the beginning

Before you rush to copy files, follow 3 mandatory steps to avoid data loss or phone freezes. Neglecting them is the main reason why users post on forums: "After transferring all photos!"

✅ Step 1: Check the space available on your new phone

On the old device, open Settings. → Memory and see how much it takes:

- Photo and video (folder) DCIM/Camera)

- Downloads.

- Annexes (Android/data)

The new phone should have at least 20 percent more free space, for example, if you're carrying 64GB, the new device should have 77-80GB free. MIUI You may interrupt the copying due to memory loss.

💡

If there is little space on your new phone, temporarily transfer heavy files (such as movies) to a memory card or cloud, and delete them after transferring the data.

✅ Step 2: Update the firmware on both phones

Outdated versions MIUI (Below 12.5), you may not be able to support modern transmission protocols, which will cause the transfer rate to drop by 10 times:

1. Go to Settings → About the phone → System update.
2. If you have an update, install it (preferably via Wi-Fi).
3. After the update, restart both phones.

✅ Step 3: Backup your critical data

Even if you are confident in the transfer method, make a backup of contacts, SMS And notes through Mi Cloud:

1. Open your Settings → Xiaomi Account → Mi Cloud.
2. Enable synchronization for Contacts, Notes and SMS.
3. Press Sync and wait until it is completed.

⚠️ Warning: If your old phone has Mi Cloud disabled, re-connect your account, and without that, you won't back up, and if you reset your new phone, you'll lose your data!

After preparation, you can start transferring. Below are 5 ways, from the fastest to the most versatile.

Method 1: Mi-Mover migration (fastest)

Mi Mover - built-in application in the MIUI, It allows you to move all the content (including apps and their data) in one click. MIUI 9 and newer, but there are nuances:

• 📱 Supported data: contacts, SMS, Photos, videos, music, applications (including game saves), system settings.
• ⚡ Speed: up to 50 MB/s (depending on model).
• ❌ Restrictions: Does not transfer passwords from Mi Browser and some data from third-party apps (such as WhatsApp).

Step-by-step:

1. On the new phone, select Data Transfer when you first turn on (if the phone is already configured, reset it to factory settings or use method 3).
2. On your old phone, open Mi Mover (if not, download from the Play Market).
3. Select I am the sender on the old phone and I am the receiver on the new one.
4. Scan it. QR-code from a new phone on an old one.
5. Select data for transfer (we recommend leaving all ticks) and click Start.
6. Wait until it is finished (don’t turn off Wi-Fi or block screens!).

Battery charge >50% on both phones|Both phones are connected to the same Wi-Fi network.|There is plenty of free space on the new phone.|Disabled. VPN and energy-saving regimes-->

If the Mi Mover is suspended during the connection stage:

• 🔄 Reboot both phones.
• 📶 Connect to another Wi-Fi network (sometimes the router blocks the local connection).
• 📱 Make sure that the developer mode is turned on on on the old phone → Local network (debugging over Wi-Fi).

⚠️ Warning: If you interrupt the Mi Mover transfer halfway, the data on the new phone could get damaged, so you'll have to reset it to factory settings and start over.

💡

Mi Mover is the fastest way, but it only works when you turn on your new phone for the first time. If the phone is already configured, use method 3 (cable) OTG) or 4 (Mi Cloud).

3. Method 2: Transfer via cable OTG (bulky)

If you have more than 50 GB of data (for example, a collection of photos in the RAW or video 4K), Mi Mover may not work properly, in which case the cable OTG (adapter USB-C to USB-C) — The best choice: speeds are 100-150 MB/s, and the risk of data loss is minimal.

What you need:

• 🔌 Cable OTG (for older models with Micro-USB, or USB-C to USB-C (new).
• 📱 Both phones with a charge. >30%.
• 🔄 Enabled File Transfer Mode (MTP) old-phone.

Instructions:

1. Connect the OTG cable to the new phone and the other end to the old one.
2. On your old phone, select File Transfer (MTP) mode in the connection notification.
3. On the new phone, open the Explorer (Files) → choose USB-device (this is an old phone).
4. Copy the folders you need (DCIM, Download, Pictures, etc.) into the internal memory of your new phone.
5. Use Archiving to Speed Up: Select Folders → Squeeze. → carry over ZIP-archive.

Table of transfer rate (approximate values):

If the new phone doesn’t see the old one, OTG:

• 🔌 Try another cable (cheap) OTG-Adapters are often not supported MTP).
• 📱 On your old phone, turn on Settings. → Additionally. → For developers → Debugging by USB.
• 🔄 Reboot both phones.

4. Method 3: Mi Cloud (for contacts, notes, SMS)

Mi Cloud is Xiaomi’s cloud storage that automatically syncs your contacts, SMS, The main advantage is that you don't have to connect your phones to each other:

• ☁️ Free: Only 5GB (this is) ~1000 photos in compressed format).
• 📁 What is synchronized: Contacts, SMS, Notes, calendar, browser bookmarks.
• ❌ What NOT syncs: Photo/video (only if manually downloaded), apps, music.

How to transfer data through Mi Cloud:

1. On your new phone: Log in to the same Mi Account. Open Mi Cloud and enable sync. Data will start downloading automatically (it can take up to 10 minutes).

How to transfer photos/video to Mi Cloud (if there is not enough space):

1. Open the gallery on your old phone.
2. Select the files → More. → Download to Mi Cloud.
3. Open the gallery on your new phone. → Mi Cloud → download files.

⚠️ Warning: If you delete photos from your old phone before they load into the Mi Cloud, they will be gone forever".

Alternative clouds (if Mi Cloud is not suitable):

5. Method 4: Transfer over a computer (for full control)

If you need to selectively transfer files or back up to your PC, this is the most reliable way, and it's suitable for users who want to save folder structure or migrate data to a computer. Mac/Linux.

What you need:

Instructions for Windows:

1. Connect your old phone to your computer and select File Transfer (MTP) mode.
2. Open This Computer → Find a Xiaomi Device
3. Copy the right folders (DCIM, Download, Miui, etc.) to your computer.
4. Turn off the old phone, plug in a new one.
5. Transfer files from your computer to your new phone.

To transfer applications and their data:

1. Install Xiaomi. PC Suite from the official website.
2. Connect the old phone → Choose Backup Copying.
3. Create a backup (select all data).
4. Connect a new phone → Select Restore and specify the backup file.

If the computer can't see the phone:

• 🔌 Try another one. USB-port (preferably) USB 3.0).
• 📥 Install Mi drivers USB Driver (you can download it on Xiaomi website).
• 🔄 Turn on Debugging. USB In Settings → For developers.

💡

If you’re porting music, use MusicBee or iTunes (for Mac) – they automatically sync playlists and album covers.

6. Method 5: Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Direct (if nothing else)

This is the slowest, but it can help if you don’t have cables or a computer on hand, and is suitable for transferring small files (up to 1-2 GB), such as contacts or documents.

How to transfer files via Bluetooth:

1. On both phones, turn on Bluetooth (Settings → Connections → Bluetooth).
2. Then, connect the devices (on one click Search, on the other confirm the connection).
3. On the old phone, select files in the Explorer → Share. → Bluetooth.
4. Select a new phone and confirm the file acceptance.

Speed and limitations:

• ⏳ Bluetooth 4.0: ~1-2 MB/s (500 MB) = ~10 minutes).
• ⚡ Bluetooth 5.0: ~3-4 MB/s (500 MB) = ~3-4 minutes).
• ❌ Restrictions: you can not transfer folders (only individual files), often the connection is terminated.

How to transfer via Wi-Fi Direct (faster than Bluetooth):

1. On both phones, turn on Wi-Fi Direct (Settings → Wi-Fi → Wi-Fi Direct).
2. Connect to a network created by one of the phones.
3. Use a conductor or ES File Explorer for transferring files over a local network.

⚠️ Note: When transmitting via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi Direct, do not turn off the phone screens – the connection will break and the transfer will be interrupted.

7. Transfer specific data (WhatsApp, passwords, games)

Some data are not transferred in standard ways, such as:

- 💬 WhatsApp: chats and media files are stored in an encrypted database.

- 🎮 Games: saves (e.g. in Genshin Impact or PUBG Mobile) linked to an account.

- 🔑 Passwords: Mi Browser and Google Chrome are synced only through the cloud.

How to move WhatsApp:

1. On your old phone, make a backup: Open WhatsApp → ⋮ → Settings → chat → Backup. Click Create a copy (the file will be saved to the /sdcard/WhatsApp/Databases).

WhatsApp

OTG

WhatsApp

How to transfer the game saves:

• 🎮 Cloud-Save Games: Sign in to the same account (Google Play Games, Mi Account, Facebook).
• 📁 Locally saved games: copy folders from /Android/obb/ and /Android/data/.

How to transfer passwords from the browser:

• 🌐 Mi Browser: synced automatically through Mi Cloud.
• 🔍 Google Chrome: Sign in to the same Google account → Passwords will be downloaded from the cloud.

8. Frequent mistakes and how to avoid them

Even when you follow instructions, users have problems. TOP-5 mistakes and their solutions:

1. "Mi Mover can't see the old phone."

• 📶 Make sure both phones are connected to the same Wi-Fi network (not mobile data!).
• 🔄 Reboot the router.
• 📱 On the old phone, turn off the power saving mode and VPN.

2. "Photos moved, but not opened"

• 🖼️ Check the file extensions (sometimes they change to.jpg.download).
• 📁 Transfer the entire folder, not the individual files.
• 🔧 Use Google Photos to Automatically Convert.

3. "There are no apps on the new phone"

• 📥 Install them manually from the Play Market.
• 🔄 If the app is paid, sign in to the same Google account so you don’t buy again.

4. "Bluetooth breaks off at half-transfer"

• 📱 Keep your phones at a distance of no more than 1 meter.
• 🔋 The battery should be charged. >50%.
• 📴 Turn off Flight Mode and Energy Saving.

5. "Mi Cloud does not sync contacts"

• ☁️ Check that both phones have the same Mi Account.
• 🔄 Manually run synchronization in Mi Cloud → Contacts → Synchronize.
• 📱 If contacts are duplicated, use the Duplicate Contacts app to clean up.

💡

If something goes wrong, don’t panic: most problems are solved by rebooting phones or checking your internet connection.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions