How to Clean Xiaomi Phone Memory: From Basic Cleaning to Deep Analysis

Xiaomi’s smartphones, including the Redmi and POCO brands, are famous for their performance, but even the most powerful models eventually start to slow down. The main reason for the slowdown of the MIUI or HyperOS interface is often crowded internal storage. When free space runs out, the system lacks resources for temporary files and caching operations, which leads to friezes and long downloads of applications.

Users often face a situation where a space shortage notice suddenly appears on the screen, blocking installation of updates or the creation of new photos. At this point, it is important to understand that the standard removal of applications from the menu is only the tip of the iceberg. Deep cleaning requires a comprehensive approach: from working with built-in utilities to manually removing system debris that accumulates for months.

In this guide, we will look at all available methods of freeing up space on your device. We will not rely on dubious programs from the Internet, but only use proven shell tools and secure system commands, you will learn to find hidden folders, clear the messenger cache without losing correspondence and manage media files correctly.

Analysis of occupied space and built-in tools

Before you start deleting files, you need to determine exactly what takes up precious gigabytes. The MIUI shell and the new HyperOS are equipped with a powerful built-in analyzer, which is often ignored by users in favor of third-party applications.

To start the analysis, go to Settings → About Phone → Storage. Here, the system visualizes data by breaking it down into categories: apps, images, videos, documents, etc. Notice the “Other” section, which is often inflated to incomprehensible sizes due to residual files from remote programs or the cache of streaming services.

And the important thing to note is that the built-in analyzer not only shows volume, but it also allows you to go straight to cleaning. If you click on any category, you'll see a list of files sorted by size. Large files that you don't recognize or that you've downloaded a long time ago can be deleted right from that interface.

• 📊 Use the built-in Cleaner to quickly diagnose major memory problems.
• 📂 Sort files by size to find heavyweights taking up space for years.
• 🗑️ Check the Recycle Bin in the Gallery and File Manager, as deleted files often stay there for 30 days.

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The built-in storage analyzer in MIUI/HyperOS has deeper access to system files than third-party applications from Google Play, making it a primary diagnostic tool.

Working with the cache of applications and messengers

The most voracious elements in the Android ecosystem are traditionally messengers. Telegram, WhatsApp and Viber have a habit of saving every picture, video and voice message viewed to the device’s local memory. Over time, the folders of these applications can grow to tens of gigabytes, even if you deleted the chats themselves long ago.

Clearing the cache through the standard Android settings menu (Applications → Application Management → [Select App] → Memory → Clear cache) is a safe method. However, for messengers it is better to use their internal cleaning settings to avoid losing important authorization data or draft messages. In Telegram, for example, you can set up automatic deletion of the media cache.

⚠️ Note: When cleaning the application data (not to be confused with cache), you will lose all local correspondence history and settings within the program. Always use the function “Clear cache” and not “Clear data” if you are not sure about the safety of backup copies.

To clean up instant messengers deeply, go to their settings: on WhatsApp, it’s Settings → Data and Storage → Storage Management. Here you can selectively remove heavy videos from specific chats. On Telegram, go to Settings → Data and memory → Memory Use and set a cache limit, such as 1 GB, and enable auto-deletion.

• 🧹 Regularly check the settings of autoload media in instant messengers, disabling saving to the gallery.
• 💬 Use the “Storage Management” function inside the apps themselves to selectively remove heavy content.
• 🚫 Do not use aggressive “accelerators” that close the background processes, as this only increases battery consumption when you restart.

Social media and browser cache is also worth noting: apps like Instagram, TikTok and YouTube cache video previews and newsfeeds, and can be safely cleaned through the app management menu, often freeing up between 500MB and 2GB of space instantly.

Delete hidden folders and residual files

Many applications leave behind tails when they are deleted, folders with configuration files, error logs, or temporary data, often at the root of internal memory and not automatically deleted, and will require a built-in Explorer app or any file manager with access to the root directory to detect them.

In Xiaomi’s file manager, go to the folders section (or Internal Shared Drive) and look for folders with names of remote apps or services you no longer use, such as com.oldapp folders or directories with game names that were deleted six months ago.

A special place is occupied by the folder MIUI inside Android/data. Logs and themes are stored here. debug_log or theme (if you don't use third-party themes all the time) can free up a significant amount of space. Xiaomi/euclid, where technical data are sometimes collected.

When manually cleaning, always follow the principle: if you do not know what a file or folder is responsible for, it is better to search the Internet before deleting.

Optimization of media files and cloud technologies

High-resolution photos and videos are the main consumers of memory on a modern smartphone. RAW or 4K/8K video can take up hundreds of megabytes each. The optimal solution for Xiaomi owners is to integrate with cloud services such as Google Photos or Xiaomi Cloud.

Use the Free Space feature in the Google Photos app, which automatically finds copies of photos and videos that have already been safely uploaded to the cloud and removes them from internal memory, allowing you to store media in original quality in the cloud, leaving only previews on your phone or leaving nothing at all.

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Enable the sync of the gallery with Google Photos in the “High Quality” mode to get unlimited storage (with a little compression) and automatically free up memory on the phone.

You also need to pay attention to the format of the recording. If you're not a professional photographer, switch the camera to shooting mode. HEIF (for the photo and HEVC (for video) allows you to reduce the size of files in half without any visible loss of quality. → Format.

• ☁️ Set up automatic gallery sync with the cloud for instant backup.
• 📉 Transform the camera to video recording mode 1080p instead 4K, if the free space is critically small.
• 🔄 Check the recently deleted folder regularly, as the files there take up space until final erasure.

Don't forget offline maps and music. Navigators (Yandex Maps, Google Maps) and streaming services (Spotify, Yandex Music) often store gigabytes of maps and tracks for offline mode. If you rarely go without the Internet, remove downloaded areas and playlists.

Advanced methods: ADB and deep cleaning

For advanced users who want to make the most of their device, there is a method of cleaning through debugging via USB and computer. Using the Android Debug Bridge (ADB) toolkit, you can delete the system cache and files that are not available through the normal interface, as well as remove the undeletable system applications (bloatware) built into the manufacturer.

To start, activate Developer Mode. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly press 7 times on MIUI Version (or OS Version). Then, in advanced settings, turn on “Debugging on USB.” Connect your phone to your PC, install drivers and ADB.

adb shell pm list packages -3


adb shell pm uninstall -k --user 0 com.example.bloatware

This command allows you to remove applications for the current user without affecting the system partition, which is safe to guarantee. However, be extremely careful: removing critical system components can lead to unstable operation or a “boot” (cyclic reboot).

⚠️ Attention: Before use ADB Make sure to make a complete backup of data. Incorrect removal of system packages (for example, security components or system system components) UI) It can make the phone unusable without flashing.

Also through ADB You can clear the cache of dalvik and art objects, which sometimes helps after major system updates. $(( $(getprop ro.storage.total_size) / 10 ) ) (Recovery requires root or specific rights on some builds or cleaning through Recovery Mode (Wipe Cache Partition) are effective methods for dealing with system debris.

Prevention and maintenance of order

To avoid going back to cleaning up memory every month, you need to develop a digital hygiene habit: Regular maintenance takes less time than dealing with the effects of crowded storage, and the Android system and MIUI shell work most efficiently when at least 10-15% of free space is reserved on the disk.

Make a rule: check the Downloads and Documents folder once a week. APK-files that are no longer needed after installing applications, or heavy PDF-It's also useful to audit installed applications once a quarter.

• 📅 Set a reminder in the calendar on the first day of each month to check the storage.
• 🚫 Turn off autoloading files in messengers so that they do not automatically save.
• 🔄 Reboot your smartphone periodically so that the system can reset temporary files and complete the frozen processes.

Using microSD cards (if the model supports) is also a great solution for storing photos and videos, unloading the main memory for the system and applications.