How to transfer contacts from Xiaomi to Xiaomi Redmi – all working ways

Why is the migration of contacts necessary and what risks exist

The transition to the new Xiaomi Redmi smartphone is always an exciting moment, but many users face an unexpected problem: how to transfer contacts from the old Xiaomi without loss? Mistakes during migration can lead to duplicate records, loss of important numbers or even failure of synchronization with accounts, especially for owners of devices with MIUI 14/15, where the algorithms of work with Mi Account and Google Contacts have changed.

In this article, we will analyze 5 proven ways to transfer contacts - from classic export through the Internet. SIM-map to advanced methods using Mi Cloud and ADB. You will learn which method is the fastest, which keeps your call history, and how to avoid typical synchronization errors, and also a unique life hack for transferring contacts from a blocked Xiaomi without losing data.

Method 1: Transfer over Mi Cloud (official method from Xiaomi)

The most reliable way is to use the Mi Cloud cloud service, which is integrated into the MIUI firmware, which guarantees the safety of all contact fields (including photos, notes and groups), but requires pre-configuration.

To move contacts through Mi Cloud, follow the following steps:

• 📱 On an old smartphone: go to Settings → Mi Account → Mi Cloud → Contacts and turn on sync. Wait until the process is complete (the indicator in the upper right corner turns green).
• 🔄 On the new Redmi: log in to the same Mi Account and enable contact synchronization in Settings → Mi Account → Mi Cloud.
• ⏳ Wait 5-10 minutes, the contacts will automatically appear in the phone book. If this does not happen, check your Internet connection or restart your device.

⚠️ Note: If your old phone has Mi Account disabled, be sure to link it to your account before transferring, otherwise the data may be lost when you reset your settings.

Sign in to Mi Account on old Xiaomi

Enable contact synchronization in Mi Cloud

Sign in to the new Redmi under the same account

Check Wi-Fi or mobile internet connection

Reboot the new smartphone after synchronization-->

Method 2: Export/import via VCF file (for advanced users)

If you prefer manual control of data, exporting contacts to a.vcf (vCard) file is the perfect solution, which is independent of cloud services and works even without the Internet, suitable for transferring contacts between Xiaomi and other brands (for example, Samsung or iPhone).

Instructions:

1. On the old Xiaomi, open the Contacts app, click on three dots (⋮) in the upper right corner and select Contact Management → Imports/Exports → Export to file.
2. Select a save location (e.g., Internal Memory → Download) and confirm export. The file will be called contacts.vcf.
3. Transfer the file to the new Redmi via Bluetooth, USB-Cable or cloud storage (e.g. Google Drive).
4. On the new phone, open the contacts.vcf file and confirm the import to the phone book.

💡 Useful tip: If contacts are not imported, check the file encoding. MIUI create VCF format UTF-16, Use a converter that is not readable on new devices, VCF Converter from Play Market to convert to UTF-8.

Method 3: Sync through Google Account (universal method)

If you use Google, this is the easiest way to do this, and it's not just for your contacts, but also for calendars, notes from Google Keep, and data from other apps, and the key is to have an active Google Account on both devices.

Step-by-step:

• 🔗 On the old Xiaomi: go to Settings → Accounts. → Google → Sync your account and enable the Contact option.
• ☁️ Wait for the sync to be completed (check in Google Contacts at contacts.google.com).
• 📱 On the new Redmi: add the same Google Account in the settings and enable contact sync.
• ✅ In 5-10 minutes, the contacts will appear in the phone book. If this does not happen, check the sync settings in Settings. → Accounts. → Google → Synchronization management.

⚠️ Note: If your contacts are not stored in Google but in local memory (Device), you must first export them to your Google Account. → Settings → Imports/Exports → Copy contacts and select the source Device and the target is Google.

Mi Cloud|Google Account|Local file. VCF|Bluetooth/SIM-map|Other-->

Method 4: Transfer through SIM-card (for devices without the Internet)

If you don’t have access to the Internet or cloud services, you can use the old-fashioned method of transferring contacts through the Internet. SIM-This method is suitable for a small number of contacts (up to 250 records). SIM-The cards have a limited amount of memory.

How to transfer contacts:

1. On the old Xiaomi, open your contacts. → Settings → Imports/Exports → Exports to SIM-map.
2. Select contacts for export (you can mark all or only the necessary ones) and confirm the action.
3. Extract. SIM-Map and paste it into the new Redmi.
4. On your new phone, go to Contacts. → Settings → Imports/Exports → Import with SIM-map.

📌 Important nuances:

• SIM-Cards store only name and number – photos, addresses and notes are not transferred.
• On some Redmi models (e.g. Redmi Note 12 Pro)+) importation SIM required PIN-map.
• If the pins are not imported, try using a nano-SIM adapter (some slots do not support microformat).

💡

Before exporting to SIM Check her space. Go to Settings. → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Memory. SIM-Delete old contacts if you have them.

Method 5: Transfer over Bluetooth or LAN (no clouds)

If you don't trust cloud services or want to move contacts as quickly as possible, you can use Bluetooth or Wi-Fi Direct, which works even without the Internet and does not require registration with accounts.

Instructions for Bluetooth:

1. Turn on Bluetooth on both devices and pair.
2. On old Xiaomi, open Contacts → Settings → Send Contacts and select Bluetooth.
3. Mark the contacts you want (or click Select All) and send them to the new Redmi.
4. On the new phone, confirm the file acceptance and import contacts.

🔧 The alternative is Wi-Fi Direct:

If Bluetooth is unstable, use Wi-Fi Direct:

1. Activate Wi-Fi Direct in Settings → Connection and Sharing → Wi-Fi Direct on both phones.
2. Connect devices to each other (no password required).
3. Send the contacts.vcf file (see Method 2) through any file manager (e.g., Mi File Manager).

⚠️ Note: When transmitting via Bluetooth or Wi-Fi Direct, there may be errors in encoding Cyrillic characters. If contact names are displayed by Krakozabra, repeat the transfer using the file. VCF (see method 2).

💡

Bluetooth and Wi-Fi Direct are suitable for carrying a small number of contacts (up to 500 records), and for larger bases, it is better to use cloud services or a VCF file.

Bonus: Transfer contacts from blocked Xiaomi (if you forgot the password)

Situation: you sell the old Xiaomi, but you forgot to unplug the Mi Account, and now the phone is locked. How do you move contacts in this case? There are two working solutions:

Method 1: Recovery mode (if USB debugging is enabled)

If USB debugging was previously activated on the phone, you can extract contacts using ADB:

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

This file contains all contacts in the SQLite database format, which can be opened with the DB Browser for SQLite program and exported to VCF.

Method 2: Through SIM-Card (if the phone is unlocked for a while)

Some Xiaomi models (e.g. Redmi 9A or Poco X3) allow you to unlock the screen for a short time via Emergency Call.

1. On the lock screen, press Emergency Call.
2. Enter the combination ##4636## (the test menu will open).
3. Return to the home screen and quickly open Contacts → Export to SIM.

⚠️ Note: These methods may violate Xiaomi's security policies; use them only to transfer your data from devices that belong to you. Illegal data extraction from other people's phones is punishable by law.

Comparison of all methods: which one to choose?

🔍 Recommendation:

• For permanent use, choose Mi Cloud or Google Account – these provide automatic synchronization.
• For a single transfer is optimal VCF-File – it is universal and does not depend on clouds.
• If you need to transfer contacts without the Internet, use it. SIM-map.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)