How to sync Google Photos with Xiaomi phone: the complete guide

Why is Google Photo Syncing on Xiaomi Unstable?

Xiaomi smartphone owners often face a problem: photos are not automatically uploaded to Google Photos despite the synchronization enabled. MIUI, It blocks the background activity of apps, and even if you set up your account correctly, it can pause photo loading to save battery life -- especially on models with a high-end user experience. MIUI 14/15.

The second common problem is the conflict with the built-in Xiaomi Gallery app, which by default backs up media files in the Mi Cloud, which sometimes interferes with Google Photos, such as on the Redmi Note 12 or the Redmi Note 12. POCO X5 Users note that new images are duplicated in both services, but synchronization with Google is delayed.

In this article, we will discuss:

• 🔧 Step-by-step synchronization settings for MIUI 14/15 (including hidden parameters)
• ⚡ Optimize energy consumption so that photos are loaded without delay
• 🚫 5 Frequent Errors (from “Load Expectations” to Authorization Failures)
• 📱 Features for specific models (Xiaomi) 13T, Redmi A2, POCO F5)

Preparing Xiaomi phone for synchronization

Before setting up Google Photos, you need to prepare your smartphone to avoid problems with the background of the application, starting with checking the key parameters:

1. Update. MIUI on old builds (e.g., on the latest version, MIUI 12.5) may not have options to control the autorun of applications. → The phone. → Version. MIUI.
2. Free up storage. If your phone has less than 10% of the free space, the system automatically suspends background processes, including photo uploads.
3. Connect to Wi-Fi. Google Photos by default downloads media only over a wireless network to avoid wasting mobile traffic.

Pay special attention to the settings of the Google account:

• 📌 Open the Settings. → Accounts and synchronization → Google
• 📌 Make sure your account is connected and sync is enabled (the slider must be active)
• 📌 Check that the list of synchronized data has the item "Google Photos"

It's important, if you're using VPN Or an adblocker (like AdGuard), temporarily disable them. These services can block the connection to Google servers, which will lead to an error: "Failed to sync".

Step-by-step setting up Google Sync Photos

The instructions are suitable for all modern Xiaomi models (Xiaomi 14, Redmi Note 12 Pro).+, POCO X5 Pro, etc.), but there may be minor differences in the location of menu items.

Step 1: Enabling backup in Google Photos

1. Open the Google Photos app (if not, install it from Google Play).

2.Slip on the account avatar in the upper right corner and select Photo Settings.

3. Go to Backup and Sync and activate the slider.

4. Press Download Quality and select:

• 📸 Original quality – photos are saved without compression (takes up a place in Google Drive)
• 📱 High quality – compression up to 16 MP for photos and 1080p Videos (free, not available in the Disk)

Step 2: Set up Auto Start for Google Photos

This is a critical step for MIUI! Without it, the app will not work in the background.

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.

2. Find Google Photos in the list and tap it.

3. Select Permissions → Autostart and turn on the option.

4.Go back and tip the battery. → No restrictions (or no default restrictions on some models).

Check the work: take a test photo and wait for a notification from Google Photos about the successful download. If the notification did not arrive within 5 minutes, proceed to the next step.

Step 3: Additional settings to speed up synchronization

If your photos are slow or delayed, follow these steps:

💡

If you are using Xiaomi 13 Ultra or Xiaomi 12S Ultra with Leica camera, in Google Photos settings, enable the option "Save" RAW-files" (Settings section) → This allows you to download original.dng files without loss of quality.

Solving common synchronization errors

Even after you set it up properly, you can have failures, and let's look at the typical errors and how to fix them.

Error 1: “Waiting to load” or “Synchronization suspended”

This problem is most often associated with restrictions. MIUI - The solutions:

• 🔄 Restart the app: Close Google Photos in the latest app menu and reopen it.
• 📵 Turn off battery optimization for the app (see Step 2 above).
• 🌐 Check date and time: incorrect settings can block sync. Make sure Automatic (network) option is enabled in Settings → Additionally. → Date and time.

Error 2: “I failed to log in to my account”

If Google Photos asks you to re-enter your account, you are already logged in:

1. Delete your Google account in Settings → Accounts and synchronization → Google and add it again.
2. Clear the app's cache: Settings → Annexes → Google Photo → Warehouse → Clear the cache.
3. Check if Google’s modified services (such as MicroG) are installed, and they may conflict with official services.

💡

On Xiaomi models for the Chinese market (with China firmware) ROM) Google services are not available by default. Installation requires unlocking the bootloader and Global firmware ROM Or manually installing Google Installer.

Error 3: Photos are not fully uploaded or cropped

If Google Photos only displays previews or cropped versions:

• 🖼️ Check the download quality settings (see Step 1). When selecting "High Quality", photos over 16 MP will be compressed.
• 📁 Make sure that the photo is saved to a standard folder. DCIM/Camera. Photos from other folders (such as Screenshots) may be ignored.
• 🔍 Turn on the display of hidden files in Xiaomi Explorer and check if there are.nomedia files in the photo folder (they block the scanning of media).

⚠️ Attention: On Xiaomi 12T Pro and Xiaomi 13 Pro when shooting in ProRes or 8K Photos may not be uploaded due to Google Photos restrictions. For such files, use Google Drive or alternative clouds (Yandex Drive, Mega).

Storage optimization: how to free up space after synchronization

Once you successfully upload a photo to Google Photos, you can free up space on your phone by deleting local copies, but you need to be careful not to lose data.

Method 1: Automatic cleaning through Google Photos

1. Open Google Photos and tip the account avatar.

2. Select Free Space (or Storage Management) → Free up space on new versions).

3. The app will prompt you to delete photos and videos that are already backed up in the cloud.

Before removing, make sure that:

• 🔍 All photos successfully uploaded (check in the web version of photos.google.com)
• 📅 It has been at least 24 hours since the last synchronization (sometimes the download is delayed)
• 📂 The settings include the option “Delete copies from the device after backup” (if you need to automate the process)

Method 2: Manual cleaning with verification

If you prefer to control the process:

1. Create a backup photo to your computer or external drive.
2. In the Xiaomi Gallery, sort your photos by date and remove the oldest ones (the ones already in the cloud).
3. Use Explorer to find large files: Open internal memory → DCIM and delete unnecessary videos (such as takeovers or failed shootings).

⚠️ Note: Xiaomi with hybrid firmware (e.g. Xiaomi.eu) may have ghost files in the Gallery after cleaning photos via Google Photos. To delete them, restart your phone or use Explorer to manually clean folders. DCIM/.thumbnails.

Synchronization of Google Photos on specific Xiaomi models

Some Xiaomi smartphones have unique features that affect the work of Google Photos. Consider the nuances for popular lines.

Xiaomi 13/13 Pro/13 Ultra

On the flagships with the Leica camera:

• 📸 Photo format DNG (RAW) Not loaded in "High Quality" - only in "Original".
• 🎥 Video in the video 8K Dolby Vision may not sync. Use Google Drive for them.
• 🔋 Turn on the settings. → Battery → Performance mode for stable background work.

Redmi Note 12 Series

On these models, the most common problems with autostart:

• 🔄 After updating MIUI Auto-run settings are reset. Check them after each update.
• 📶 If the Wi-Fi signal is weak, the photo loading may be interrupted. → Wi-Fi → Additionally. → Auto-connect to open networks (disable this option).

POCO F5/F4 Series

Nana POCO shelled POCO Launcher:

• 🚀 Turn on the settings. → Features → Turbo Mode for Prioritizing Background Processes.
• 📁 folder DCIM/POCOCamera Google Photos may not be crawled. Move the photo to DCIM/Camera.

💡

Xiaomi. 12S Ultra and Xiaomi 13 Ultra to speed up photo upload in Google Photos turn off image processing in the Xiaomi Gallery: Gallery settings → Laboratory → Disable Smart Processing, which will reduce the processor load and speed up synchronization.

Alternative ways to back up photos

If Google Photos is not suitable (for example, due to storage limitations), consider alternatives:

Automatically upload to alternative clouds:

1. Install the official service application (Yandex Drive, Amazon Photos, etc.).
2. In the application settings, enable Autoupload photo.
3. Set up auto-start and battery exceptions (similar to Google Photos).

⚠️ Note: When using Mi Cloud and Google Photos, you may experience a sync conflict where photos are duplicated or lose date stamps. To avoid this, select one primary backup service.

FAQ: Frequent questions about syncing Google Photos on Xiaomi