How to transfer contacts to Xiaomi phone: 7 proven ways

The transition to a new Xiaomi smartphone is always exciting, especially when it comes to the preservation of important data. Contacts accumulated over the years can be a real headache if you do not know how to transfer them correctly. Unlike photos or music, losing a phone book often means losing ties with loved ones, colleagues or partners - it can be extremely difficult to restore such data.

In this article, we’ll break down all the current ways to transfer contacts to Xiaomi devices (including Redmi models, POCO Black Shark, from classical imports of the SIM-We will focus on nuances that the manufacturer rarely mentions in official instructions, such as why some contacts may be duplicated or lost during transfer, and how to avoid this. If you are switching from an iPhone, Samsung or other Android device, here you will find step-by-step solutions for your case.

1. Transfer of contacts with SIM-maps on Xiaomi

The easiest, but not the most reliable way - import contacts directly from the SIM-It's good if you have a small phone book (up to 250 records) and don't store additional information like addresses or birthdays. On Xiaomi devices, this process takes less than a minute, but it has its pitfalls.

To transfer contacts to SIM:

1. Put it in. SIM-Xiaomi slot card (Nano-SIM and Micro-SIM with adapter supported).
2. Open the Contacts app (an icon with a person’s silhouette).
3. Slip on three dots in the top right corner → Contact management → Import/Export contacts.
4. Select Import with SIM-maps and specify where to save data (on the device or in the Mi Account).
5. Confirm the action and wait for the process to be completed.

⚠️ Attention: SIM-The cards have a limit on the number of contacts saved (usually 200-250), if your phone book is larger, the data will be truncated without warning, and only names and numbers are imported - all additional information (photos, notes) will be lost.

After importing, we recommend checking duplicates: go to Contacts → Management → Combine duplicates. Xiaomi will automatically offer to merge the same entries, but sometimes manual editing is required – for example, if the contacts are saved with different number formats (+7 vs 8).

💡

Before importing with SIM, disable the “Show contacts with SIM” option in the display settings – this will eliminate confusion between old and new entries.

2. synchronize contacts through Google account

If you've used an Android smartphone before, chances are your contacts are already tied to a Google account, a method that is considered the most reliable: data is stored in the cloud, automatically updated and available on any device. On Xiaomi, synchronization is included in several taps, but there are nuances with power saving settings that can block background data transfer.

Instructions for transfer:

• 📱 Open the Settings. → Accounts and synchronization.
• 🔄 Select your Google account (or add a new one if you don’t have one).
• 📋 Turn on the slider opposite Contact.
• ⚡ Reboot the device – this will speed up the first synchronization.

If no contact appears:

1. Check your internet connection (better use Wi-Fi).
2. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management → Contacts and allow auto-start and work in the background.
3. In Settings → Battery → Power Saving Mode, add Contacts and Google Play Services to exceptions.

3.Moving contacts from iPhone to Xiaomi

The transition from iPhone to Xiaomi is often accompanied by problems with data portability due to ecosystem differences. Apple uses a closed.vcf format to export contacts, and Xiaomi may not handle encoding correctly. We tested three ways: telling which works best.

Method 1: Using iCloud (Recommended)

1. On iPhone, open Settings → [Your name] → iCloud and enable Contacts.
2. Go to iCloud.com from your computer, log in and export your contacts to the.vcf file.
3. Send the file to Xiaomi (by mail, via Telegram or Mi Drop).
4. Open the file on your smartphone – contacts will be automatically added to the phone book.

Method 2: "Move to iOS" app (official but buggy)

This is Apple's solution that has to move your contacts directly over Wi-Fi, but in practice it often makes the error "I couldn't connect."

• 📱 On iPhone, install Move to iOS from the App Store.
• 🔄 On Xiaomi, select Data Transfer when you first enable it (if the device is already configured, reset it!).
• 🔐 Enter the code generated on Xiaomi into the iPhone app.

⚠️ Note: Move to iOS only works on new Xiaomi devices (until the first setup).If the smartphone has already been used, you will have to reset to factory settings, which will delete all data!

4.Using Mi Cloud for Backup

Mi Cloud is Xiaomi’s proprietary cloud storage that automatically backs up contacts, messages and notes. Its main advantage over Google is the ability to recover even after a device is reset. However, the service has a limitation: only 5 GB is available for free, and a Mi Account is required to sync contacts (if not, register with Settings → Mi Account).

How to transfer contacts through Mi Cloud:

• 📱 On an old smartphone (if it is on the phone) MIUI) Open the settings. → Mi Account → Mi Cloud.
• 🔄 Turn on Contact Sync and wait until it is completed (check the indicator at the top of the screen).
• 📲 On the new Xiaomi, log in to the same Mi Account and enable sync in Mi Cloud.
• ⏳ Wait 5-10 minutes for contacts to appear automatically.

If the contacts are not synchronized:

1. Check that both devices have mobile internet or Wi-Fi enabled.
2. Update MIUI to the latest version (in Settings → About Phone → System Update).
3. Remove the Mi Cloud cache in Settings → Applications → Application Management → Mi Cloud → Clear the cache.

5. Transfer of contacts from the computer (via VCF or Excel)

If you have a backup of contacts on your PC (e.g. exported from Outlook, Yandex.Mail or an old phone), you can upload them to Xiaomi via a.vcf or.csv file. This method is suitable for mass import, but requires data pre-preparation.

Step 1: Preparing the file

• 📄 If you have Excel (.xls or.csv), convert it to.vcf via online services like ConvertCSV.
• 🔍 Check the format of the numbers: they must be in an international format (for example, the number should be in a different format, +79123456789, not 89123456789).

Step 2: Move to Xiaomi

1. Connect your smartphone to your PC via USB (select File Transfer Mode).
2. Copy the.vcf file to the Download folder or desktop.
3. On Xiaomi, open the file through Explorer – the system will prompt you to import contacts.

⚠️ Note: When importing a large file (.vcf with 1000)+ Xiaomi can freeze. Break the file into parts of 300-400 records using SplitVCF.

💡

.vcf files support not only numbers, but also photos of contacts, addresses and notes – this is the only way to transfer complete information without loss.

6. Transfer contacts from another Android device (Samsung, Huawei, etc.)

If you’re switching from another Android smartphone (like Samsung, Huawei or Realme), you have three options: through Google, the manufacturer’s proprietary utilities, or direct file copying.

Method 1: Smart Switch (for Samsung)

• 📱 Install Samsung Smart Switch on both devices.
• 🔄 On Samsung, select Send Data, on Xiaomi, Receive Data.
• 📶 Connect via Wi-Fi Direct or cable OTG.
• ✅ Select Contacts and Confirm the Transfer.

Method 2: Direct copying of the contact file

1. On your old phone, open Contacts → Settings → Export and save the contacts.vcf file to internal memory.
2. Connect both devices to your PC and copy the file to Xiaomi.
3. Open the file on your new smartphone – contacts are automatically imported.

If your old phone doesn’t have an export option, use a Explorer (like Total Commander) to find the contact file manually.

/storage/emulated/0/Download/contacts.vcf


or




/data/data/com.android.providers.contacts/databases/contacts2.db

7. Restoration of contacts after discharge or loss

If you accidentally deleted contacts or made a Xiaomi reset to factory settings, they can be restored - but only if sync with Google or Mi Cloud was previously enabled.Without backup, the chances are minimal, but there are a few life hacks.

Recovery methods:

• 🔄 Through Google: Sign in to your account at contacts.google.com - if contacts synced, they'll be there.Export them to.vcf and import them to Xiaomi.
• ☁️ Through Mi Cloud: Log in to i.mi.com, check the Contacts section. If it is empty, try to recover data from the cart (available 30 days after deletion).
• 📱 Through backup. MIUI: If you have done local backup (Settings) → Additionally. → Backup, connect the old copy and restore contacts.

⚠️ Note: If sync with Google or Mi Cloud has been disabled, it is impossible to restore contacts after reset - they are deleted irrevocably. Use programs like Dr.Fone or EaseUS MobiSaver, but they only work on rooted devices and do not guarantee 100% results.

If you regularly lose contacts, set up automatic backups:

1. Go to Settings → Mi → Mi Cloud → Backup of the device.
2. Turn on the option and select Daily or When connecting to Wi-Fi.
3. Make sure that there are Contacts in the backup data list.

FAQ: Frequent questions about moving contacts to Xiaomi