How to quickly and safely transfer contacts from one Xiaomi phone to another

The transition to a new Xiaomi smartphone is always exciting, especially when it comes to keeping important data safe. Contacts accumulated over the years can take up hundreds of records, from colleagues and partners to friends and relatives. Losing even some of them can be a serious inconvenience. Fortunately, the MIUI ecosystem offers several reliable ways to transfer contacts between devices, both built-in tools and using third-party services.

In this article, we will discuss 5 working methods, including synchronization through the Mi Account, exporting to the Internet. SIM-Map, use of Google Contacts, Bluetooth transmission and specialized applications, special attention will be paid to the nuances that will help to avoid typical errors: duplicate recordings, loss of photos of contacts or incorrect display of Chinese characters in names. You’ll also learn how to move contacts if your old Xiaomi phone isn’t switched on or locked.

Whether you’re upgrading from Redmi Note 10 to Xiaomi 14 or transferring contacts from POCO X3 to Black Shark, our instructions are suitable for all models based on MIUI 12-14 and HyperOS. Let’s start with the easiest and most reliable way – synchronization through a branded Xiaomi account.

1. Transfer contacts through your Mi Account (the fastest way)

If both Xiaomi phones are running MIUI or HyperOS, the most logical way is to use the built-in sync via Mi Account.This method requires no additional applications, saves all contact fields (including photos and notes) and takes less than 5 minutes.

To transfer contacts through Mi Account, follow the following steps:

• 📱 On your old phone, open Settings. → Xiaomi account → Mi Cloud and make sure the switch opposite Contact is active. If sync is disabled, turn it on and wait for the process to be completed (may take a few minutes depending on the number of contacts).
• 🔄 On the new phone, sign in to the same Mi Account (if you haven't already done so when you first set up). → Xiaomi account → Mi Cloud → Contact and enable synchronization.
• ⏳ Wait for contacts to load onto a new device. This usually takes 1-3 minutes, but with a lot of data, it can take up to 10 minutes.

An important caveat: if a new phone already has contacts (for example, after recovering from a backup), they can be duplicated with those downloaded from the cloud. To avoid this, export existing contacts to a.vcf file (instructions in the next section) before synchronizing, or delete them manually.

On the old phone enabled contact synchronization in the Mi Cloud

The new phone uses the same Mi Account.

There is enough free space on the new phone to download contacts.

Traffic saving mode is disabled (can block synchronization)-->

⚠️ Note: If some contacts are not displayed during synchronization, check the Archive folder in the Contacts app. Sometimes records with incorrect characters (for example, Chinese characters or emoji in names) are automatically moved there).

2. Export and import contacts via VCF file (universal method)

The.vcf (vCard) format is a standard for storing contact information that is supported by all modern smartphones, and the advantage of this method is that the file can be transferred in any convenient way: by email, via messenger, cloud storage or even physically (for example, on a flash drive through a USB drive through a cloud storage). OTG-In addition,.vcf stores all fields, including photos, birthdays and additional phone numbers.

Instructions for export and import:

1. Exports on an old phone: 📲 Open the Contacts app. 🔧 Click on the three dots in the top right corner and select Contact Management → Imports/Exports → Export to file. 📄 Choose where to save the file (for example, internal memory). → Download) and confirm export. The file will have a type name contacts_YYYYMMDD.vcf.
2. Transfer of the file to a new phone: 📎 Use any convenient method: send the file to your mail, upload it to Google Drive or Mi Cloud, or transfer it over Bluetooth. 📱 On a new phone, download the file and remember the path to it (for example, Downloads).
3. Import on a new phone: 📞 Open Contacts. → Contact management → Imports/Exports → Import from the device. 🔍 Select the.vcf file and confirm the import. Contacts will appear in the list in a few seconds.

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If the.vcf file doesn’t open on a new phone, try renaming it contacts.vcf (without a date in the title) or using the Contacts+ app from Google Play to import.

3. sync through Google Contacts (reliable and automatic)

If you use Google services, syncing contacts through Google Account is one of the most reliable ways. Unlike Mi Cloud, this method makes it easy to manage contacts through a web interface (contacts.google.com), where you can edit, merge duplicates or restore deleted records, and contacts will be automatically available on any device with the same Google account, including tablets and computers.

How to transfer contacts through Google Contacts:

• 🔄 On your old phone, go to Settings. → Accounts. → Google → [your account] → Sync your account and switch on the switch opposite Contact.
• 🌐 To make sure contacts are uploaded to the cloud, open contacts.google.com in your browser and check the listing.
• 📱 On the new phone, add the same Google account (if it doesn’t already exist) and enable sync in your account settings.

Important: If your old phone only stored contacts in the device’s memory (not in Google Account), export to.vcf before synchronizing and import the file to Google Contacts via the web interface.

1. Open contacts.google.com.
2. Click Import in the left menu and download the.vcf file.
3. Once imported, the contacts are automatically synced to the new phone.

4. Transfer of contacts through SIM-map (if you don’t have access to the cloud)

SIM-based contact transfer is one of the oldest, but still relevant methods, especially if you don’t have access to the Internet or cloud services.

• 📵 SIM-The card stores only basic data: name and phone number (photos, email, addresses and notes will not be saved).
• 🔢 Number of contacts limited by capacity SIM-cards (usually 200-500 records).
• 📞 Numbers are kept in an international format (e.g, +79123456789), which may cause problems with operator definition.

Instructions for transfer:

1. Exports to SIM-map: 📱 On your old phone, open your contacts. → Contact management → Imports/Exports → Exports to SIM-map. 🔍 Select contacts for export (you can note everything) and confirm.
2. Transfer SIM-map: 🔄 Extract. SIM-card from an old phone and paste into a new one (or use an adapter if card formats differ).
3. Import on a new phone: 📲 Open Contacts. → Contact management → Imports/Exports → Import with SIM-map. 🔍 Choose where to import contacts (such as your phone account or Google) and confirm.

⚠️ Attention: If you're new SIM-The card already has contacts, they can be overwritten when you import them. Before the procedure, save them to a.vcf file or transfer them to the cloud.

Through the Mi Account.

Through Google Contacts

Export/import of VCF file

Through SIM-map

Another way.-->

5. Contacts over Bluetooth (without the Internet)

If you do not have access to cloud services or SIM-The card, but both Xiaomi phones are good, you can transfer contacts over Bluetooth, this method is suitable for transferring a small number of records (up to 100-200 contacts), since the process can take a long time.

Step-by-step:

• 🔵 On both phones, enable Bluetooth in the notification panel or through Settings → Connections → Bluetooth.
• 🤝 Make phones visible to other devices and pair (password is usually not required or is 0000).
• 📲 On your old phone, open Contacts, press three dots. → Send (or Share).
• 🔗 Select the contacts to transfer (you can mark everything) and press Bluetooth. Select a new phone from the list of devices.
• 📱 On the new phone, confirm the file acceptance. Contacts are saved in.vcf format, which can be opened and imported manually.

Tip: If the transmission is interrupted, break the contacts into parts (for example, 50 records) and send them separately. Also make sure that both phones have enough battery power - the process can take 10 to 30 minutes.

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Bluetooth is suitable for communication without the Internet, but inefficient for large amounts of data. For 500+ contacts, it is better to use cloud synchronization or a.vcf file.

6.Contact transfer if old Xiaomi phone doesn't turn on

When an old Xiaomi phone fails to turn on (due to a breakdown, battery drain, or software failure) it makes the task more difficult, but does not make it unsolvable. Here are 3 ways to restore contacts in this case:

• 🔧 If the phone boots in Fastboot mode: Connect your phone to your PC and use the Mi Flash Tool to flash it without losing data (only for power users!). Once the device is back up, export your contacts via Mi Cloud or.vcf.
• 💾 If you have synced with Mi Cloud enabled: Sign in to the same Mi Account on your new phone or via the web version of i.mi.com. Contacts should be available under Mi Cloud → Contacts.
• 🛠️ If the phone is physically damaged: Contact the Xiaomi service center - specialists can extract data from damaged memory (service paid, cost from 1,500 to 5 000 rubles depending on the complexity of the device).

Critically, if the phone doesn’t turn on, DO NOT try to disassemble it yourself or connect it to uncertified chargers, which can lead to permanent data loss.

7. Third-party applications for contact transfer

If built-in methods don't work for some reason, you can use specialized applications. They offer additional features such as backup in encrypted form, clearing duplicates or transferring contacts between different platforms (for example, from iPhone to Xiaomi).

How to use such applications:

1. Install the selected app on your old phone from Google Play.
2. Follow the instructions for backing up (usually the Backup or Export button).
3. Transfer the backup file to your new phone (via email, via the cloud, or directly via Wi-Fi).
4. Install the same app on your new phone and restore contacts from the file.

⚠️ Note: Before using third-party apps, check reviews and rankings on Google Play.Some programs may request excessive permissions (for example, access to the Google Play app). SMS geolocation, which is not required for backup of contacts.

FAQ: Frequent questions about moving contacts to Xiaomi