Cleaning up storage on Xiaomi: a complete guide to freeing up memory

Clogged storage on Xiaomi is a problem that every second user faces: high-resolution photos, app cache, temporary files and system updates can take up tens of gigabytes, slowing down the device. But don’t rush to buy a new phone or memory card: in 90% of cases, memory can be effectively cleaned manually or with built-in MIUI tools.

In this article, we will discuss 7 working methods - from basic (removal of duplicate photos) to advanced (cleaning the system cache through the ADB). You will learn how to make room safely without losing important data, which files can be deleted without risk and which should not be touched. POCO on MIUI 12/13/14 Android 11–14.

Before you start, check how much memory is occupied right now: go to Settings → About Phone → Storage. If less than 10% of the total is free, the device is already at its limit, and cleaning is necessary.

1. Built-in cleaning in MIUI: a quick way

The easiest way is to use Xiaomi's built-in Cleanup tool, which automatically finds junk files, app cache, and remnants of deleted programs.

1. Open the Security app (the shield icon).
2. Select the "Cleaning" tab.
3. Click "Scan" and wait for the analysis to be completed.
4. Check all categories (cache, unnecessary files, APK) and click "Clean".

The tool will remove up to 3-7 GB of garbage (depending on the intensity of the phone’s use), but it does not touch user files (photos, videos, documents), so additional steps will be required for deep cleaning.

⚠️ Note: Do not clear Download category through this tool if important files (such as tickets or document scans) are stored there.

Application cache |Remote Program Remains (APK)|Temporary files |Empty folders

Unnecessary logs of the system-->

2. Removing the application cache manually

Cache is a temporary file that applications create to speed up work, and over time, it accumulates and takes up gigabytes of memory, and you can clear the cache for each application separately:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select an app (such as YouTube or TikTok).
3. Press "Storage" → "Clear the cache".

For mass cleaning:

1. In the same Application Management menu, click on the three dots in the upper right corner.
2. Select "Sort by size."
3. Clear the cache for applications that are more than 100-200 MB.

Pay special attention to messengers (Telegram, WhatsApp) and social networks (Instagram, VKontakte) – they often store gigabytes of cached media files.

💡

After cleaning the Google Play Store cache, update it manually through Settings → Apps → Google Play Store → Update to avoid errors when installing apps.

3. Photo and video optimization: duplicate removal and compression

Photos and videos take up the lion’s share of memory on a smartphone, and Xiaomi has built-in tools to optimize them:

Removal of duplicates and blurred images

1. Open the Gallery app.
2. Go to the album "Management" (or "Tools" in new versions of MIUI).
3. Select "Dublicates" or "Blurred Photos".
4. Review the proposed files and delete the unnecessary ones.

Compression of photos without loss of quality

If you do not want to delete the photos, you can compress them:

1. In the Gallery, select an album and click "More" (⋮) → "Squeeze".
2. Select the compression quality (high is recommended to save details).
3. Click "Compress" - the originals will remain, and the compressed copies will be saved to a separate folder.

For video, use third-party applications such as Video Compress or Panda Video Compressor, which allow you to reduce the file size by 40-60% without noticeable loss of quality.

4. Clean up downloads and unnecessary files

Download is a real graveyard of unnecessary files: old APKs, memes, mail documents and duplicate photos, to get it in order:

1. Open the Files app (or Explorer).
2. Go to the Downloads section.
3. Sort files by "Size" or "Date" (click on the filter icon).
4. Delete:

• 📁 APK-Files (application installation packages, if already installed).
• 📄 PDF/DOC/XLS, Re-downloadable (checks, tickets older) 1 year-end).
• 🎵 Audio files that you don’t listen to (ringtones, voice messages).
• 🖼️ Images from messengers (saved for later").

For convenience, use the Categories feature in MIUI Explorer – it automatically groups files by type (images, documents, audio).

⚠️ Note: Before mass deletion, check the folder for important files, such as: Passport or document scans, backup archives (extension.zip or.rar), login/password files (for example,.txt with notes).

5. System debris disposal through Recovery mode

If built-in methods don't work, try cleaning through Recovery Mode, which removes temporary system files, update cache and firmware residues, does not affect user data (photos, contacts, messages), but requires caution.

Instructions:

1. Turn off the phone.
2. Press the Power button + Volume up until the MIUI logo appears.
3. In the Recovery menu, select the language (English / Whale) and go to "Wipe & Reset".
4. Select "Wipe Cache" (not to be confused with "Wipe All Data" - it's a factory reset!).
5. Confirm the action and wait for the completion.
6. Reboot the phone ("Reboot").

This method frees up 500MB to 2GB of storage if you haven’t cleaned it for a long time.Suitable for all Xiaomi models, including the Redmi Note 10/11/12 and the POCO X3/X4/X5.

💡

Clearing the cache through Recovery does not delete personal data, but it can reset some system settings (e.g., regional settings or desktop background).

6. Transfer data to a memory card or cloud

If physical memory is sorely lacking, consider moving some of the data to a microSD or cloud storage, which you can do without root rights on Xiaomi.

Transfer to memory card

Suitable for photos, videos, music and some applications:

1. Insert a memory card (UHS-I U3 class is recommended for speed).
2. Open "Settings → Storage".
3. Click on Memory Map → Format as an internal storage (Warning: After that, the card will only work with this phone!).
4. In the Explorer ("Files"), select folders (such as DCIM or Music) and click "Move" by selecting a memory card.

Automatic upload to the cloud

For backup, use:

• 🌥️ Google Photos (free 15GB, compression without loss of quality).
• 🌥️ Mi Cloud (5GB free, integrated into the MIUI).
• 🌥️ Yandex Disk or Mail.ru Cloud (10-100 GB free of charge when registering).

To enable automatic download in Google Photos:

1. Open the Google Photos app.
2. Click on the avatar → “Photo settings” → “Backup and synchronization”.
3. Activate the switch and select quality ("High" to save space).

💡

If you use Mi Cloud, check your sync settings in Settings → Xiaomi Account → Mi Cloud → Sync. Turn off redundancy of unnecessary data (such as call records) to save space.

7 Advanced methods: ADB and manual cleaning

For advanced users willing to work with ADB (Android Debug Bridge), additional cleaning methods are available: They require connecting the phone to a PC, but allow you to remove system debris that is not available through standard settings.

Cleaning the cache of all applications through ADB

This command removes the cache of all applications at once:

adb shell pm clear --all

Removing unnecessary APKs and update residues

Through ADB, you can find and remove:

• 📦 Remains of old versions of applications (adb shell pm uninstall) -k --user 0 com.example.app).
• 🗑️ Temporary update files (adb shell rm) -rf /data/local/tmp/*).
• 🔄 Duplicates of system libraries (requires manual folder analysis) /system).

To work with ADB:

1. Enable Developer Mode (Settings → About Phone → MIUI Version → Press 7 times).
2. Activate "Debugging by" USB" In Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
3. Connect your phone to your PC and use the commands above in the terminal.

⚠️ Note: Delete system files through ADB Before experimenting, backup your phone with adb backup or Mi Cloud.

FAQ: Frequent questions about cleaning up storage on Xiaomi