How to Clean Mi Cloud on Xiaomi: Freeing up space in the cloud without loss

Xiaomi’s Mi Cloud cloud storage is a handy tool for backing up photos, contacts and documents, but it’s limited in scope. Even 5GB of free space (or 100GB for premium users) runs out quickly if you don’t keep up with the sync. Many owners of Redmi smartphones, POCO Mis are notified that there is not enough space in Mi Cloud, but they do not know how to effectively clean the cloud without deleting important data.

In this article, you will find step-by-step instructions for cleaning the Mi Cloud, taking into account all the nuances from removing duplicate photos to disabling automatic synchronization of unnecessary applications. We will analyze which files can be safely deleted and which are better transferred to another medium. You will also learn about the hidden settings of the Mi Cloud, which allow you to free up to 30% of space without manually deleting files.

Important: The cleaning procedure differs depending on the smartphone model and version MIUI. The article presents universal methods that work on devices from Xiaomi 11T Pro to Redmi Note 12, but older models (such as Mi 8 or Redmi 5) may need additional steps.

Why Mi Cloud is Fast and How to Prevent It

The main reason for the overflow of the Mi Cloud is automatic data synchronization, which users often do not turn off.

• 📸 Photos and videos in original resolution (even if you use Google Photos in parallel).
• 📱 Backups of applications, messages and calls (take up to) 2-3 GB on older devices).
• 📄 Documents and downloads, including cache of some applications (e.g, WPS Office or Xiaomi Docs).
• 🎵 Audio files recorded by a voice recorder or saved from instant messengers.

The second problem is data duplication, for example, if you use both Mi Cloud and Google Photos, the same photos can be stored on both services. MIUI Backs up every 24 hours (if you have an option in your account settings enabled) and this leads to dozens of versions of the same files being accumulated.

To prevent cloud overflow:

1. Turn off automatic video download in high resolution (Mi Cloud settings) → Photo Photo → Quality of loading).
2. Limit synchronization to important data (contacts, notes, SMS).
3. Check the Recycle Bin section in Mi Cloud regularly – files are stored there for 30 days and take up space.

How to check what is in the Mi Cloud

Before you clean up the cloud, you need to understand which data is taking up the most space.

1. Open the Settings app on your smartphone.
2. Go to Accounts and Synchronization → Mi Cloud.
3. Click on Storage Management (or Storage in older versions of MIUI).

Here you will see a diagram of the space distribution by category: photos, videos, documents, backups, etc. Click on any category to see a detailed list of files sorted by size.

💡

If you see a folder in the file list MIUI/backup A few gigabytes of size are old backups of the system, and you can delete them if you have a current copy on your PC or other media.

Please note the Other Data section – here are often hidden:

• 🗑️ Cache apps (e.g. from Xiaomi Cloud Drive or Mi Video).
• 📦 Temporary synchronization files (can take up to 500 MB).
• 🔄 System Logs (if you have participated in beta testing) MIUI).

Step-by-step: how to clean up Mi Cloud on Xiaomi

Now, let's get to the practical steps, and here's a step-by-step algorithm that can help you free up space in the cloud without losing important data.

Step 1: Remove unnecessary photos and videos

Photos and videos usually take up the lion's share of the space.

1. Open the Mi Cloud → Photo Photo.
2. Click on the icon. ⋮ (three-point) → Storage management.
3. Sort files by size (click on Size in the top panel).
4. Select unnecessary files (hold your finger on the file for multiple selection) and click Delete.

Tip: Use the Duplicate filter in Xiaomi Gallery to find and remove duplicate images before uploading them to the cloud.

Step 2: Cleaning up backup copies

Backups of systems and applications can take gigabytes to delete:

1. Go to Mi Cloud → Backup copies.
2. Select the device you want to clean your copies for.
3. Click on Backup Management.
4. Remove all copies except the most recent (or the one you want to keep).

Make sure that important data (contacts) are, SMS) synchronized with Google

Save photos on PC or external disk

Check that the last copy is not damaged (the date of creation is current)

Turn off automatic copy creation (if not necessary)-->

Step 3: Delete documents and downloads

In the Documents section, unnecessary files are often accumulated:

1. Open the Mi Cloud → Documents.
2. Sort files by type (PDF, APK, ZIP).
3. Remove outdated versions of documents, app cache (Download folder) and unnecessary APK.

Pay attention to the folder. MIUI/backup/apps — If you haven't used an app in a long time (for example, Mi Fit for an old fitness bracelet), you can safely delete its backup copy.

Step 4: Cleaning the basket

The deleted files go to the Recycle Bin and they're stored there for 30 days, taking up space to clear it.

1. In Mi Cloud, go to the Recycle Bin section.
2. Click Clear the Recycle Bin or selectively delete files.

💡

Cleaning the cart is a must! Even after deleting files from the main folders, they stay in the cart and take up space.

Step 5: Disabling unnecessary synchronization

To prevent the cloud from filling up again:

1. Go to Settings → Accounts and Sync → Mi Cloud.
2. Turn off sync for unnecessary categories (e.g. Records, Calendar, if you don’t use them).
3. In the Photos section, select Download only over Wi-Fi and set Average Quality to save space.

Hidden features of Mi Cloud: how to free up space without deleting files

Few people know, but Mi Cloud has hidden tools that help make space free without manually deleting data.

1. Photo compression

If you don’t want to delete the photos, they take up too much space:

1. Open the Mi Cloud → Photo Photo → ⋮ → Settings.
2. Enable the option to compress photos when downloading.
3. Choose High (retains 80% of the original size) or Medium (50%).

This will save up to 40% of the space without any visible loss of quality.

2. Data transfer to the archive

Mi Cloud allows you to archive rarely used files so that they do not take up space in the main storage:

1. Select the files you want to archive (such as old videos).
2. Press. ⋮ → Archive.
3. Archive files will remain available for viewing, but will not be counted in the total storage volume.

3. Optimization of backup copies

By default. MIUI Creates full backups, but you can set up incremental backups (save only modified data):

1. Go to Settings → About Phone → Backup and Reset.
2. Select Local Backup (if you want to save data on your device).
3. Turn off the redundancy of unnecessary applications in the Backup Settings.

This will reduce the size of the copies in 2-3 once.

What to do if the Mi Cloud is not cleaned

Sometimes users are faced with the fact that after deleting files, the space in the Mi Cloud is not vacated.

1.The cache is not updated

After deleting files, the free space data can be updated with a delay of up to 24 hours to speed up the process:

• 🔄 Reboot your smartphone.
• 📱 Log out of your Mi Cloud account and log in again.
• 🌐 Check your internet connection (cache only updates with a stable connection).

Synchronization failures

If files are deleted but still appear in the cloud:

• 🛠️ Clear the Mi Cloud app cache in settings (Settings) → Annexes → Application management → Mi Cloud → Clear the cache).
• 📲 Update the Mi Cloud app to the latest version in Google Play or App Store.
• 📧 Write in support of Xiaomi through the Feedback section in the app if the problem is not solved.

💡

If the space is still not vacated after cleaning, try to remove and reinstall the Mi Cloud app, which will reset the local cache and force the system to recalculate the space occupied.

3. "Inadequate rights" error

If an error occurs when deleting files:

• 🔑 Make sure you are logged in to the same Mi Cloud account that the files are linked to.
• 📋 Check if restricted access is enabled in your account settings.
• 🔄 Try to delete files via the web version of Mi Cloud on your computer (i.mi.com).

How to transfer data from Mi Cloud to another storage

If you decide to completely abandon Mi Cloud or just want to back up your data on another service, follow this instruction:

1.Photos are transferred to Google Photos

Google Photos offers 15GB of free space (with Google Drive) and more flexible settings:

1. Download Google Photos from Play Market.
2. Log in to your Google account.
3. Enable Backup and Synchronization in the application settings.
4. Choose the quality High (free, without restrictions) or Original (counted in the quota).
5. Wait until the download is complete, then delete the photos from the Mi Cloud.

2. Export of contacts

Contacts from Mi Cloud can be transferred to Google or to the Internet. SIM-map:

1. Open Contacts. → ⋮ → Contact management.
2. Choose Import/Export → Export to the device (the file will be saved in.vcf format).
3. Import the file to Google Contacts or another service.

3. Save documents on PC

To download documents from Mi Cloud to your computer:

1. Open i.mi.com in your browser.
2. Log in to your account.
3. Go to the Documents or Files section.
4. Select the files you need and click Download.

💡

Before mass deletion of data from Mi Cloud, always back up on another medium. You can't recover deleted files after cleaning the Recycle Bin!

Data Security in Mi Cloud: What You Need to Know

When cleaning up Mi Cloud, it is important not only to make room, but also to protect personal data.

1. Two-factor authentication

To protect your account from hacking:

1. Open the Settings. → Accounts and synchronization → Mi Cloud → Security.
2. Turn on two-step check.
3. Attach a phone number or email to restore access.

Verification of active sessions

If you suspect someone has accessed your cloud:

1. Go to i.mi.com.
2. In the account settings, look for Devices or Active Sessions.
3. Complete all unknown sessions and change your password.

3. Encryption of backup copies

Backups in Mi Cloud are not encrypted by default, to enable encryption:

1. When creating a backup, select the option to Encrypt a copy.
2. Set a strong password (at least 8 characters with numbers and special signs).
3. Save your password in your password manager (like Bitwarden or KeePass).

FAQ: Frequent questions about cleaning up Mi Cloud