How to Transfer All Data from the Old Xiaomi to the New: The Complete 2026 Guide

Moving to a new Xiaomi smartphone is always an exciting moment, especially when it comes to protecting personal data. Many users face a dilemma: how to transfer all settings, photos, messages and applications from an old device to a new one without losing a single byte of information? Fortunately, Xiaomi has several built-in tools and third-party solutions that simplify this process to a few clicks.

In this article, we will discuss 5 working ways to copy data between Xiaomi devices, from the official Mi Mover to cloud services and manual transfer over the PC. Particular attention will be paid to the nuances that are often missed in standard instructions: for example, how to avoid duplication of contacts or why some applications may not migrate, you will also learn what data can not be copied by standard methods and how to circumvent this limitation.

Whether you’re upgrading from Redmi Note 10 to Xiaomi 14 Ultra or just want to back up your second device, our instructions are for all MIUI-based models (including POCO and Black Shark).

1.Official method: Mi Mover - fast transfer without PC

Mi Mover is Xiaomi’s proprietary solution that allows you to transfer data directly over Wi-Fi between two smartphones.The method works on all devices with MIUI 9 and later, including the latest versions of HyperOS. The main advantage is speed and simplicity: no cables or computers are needed, and most data (contacts, SMS, photos, videos) are copied in original quality.

To use Mi Mover, follow the following steps:

• 📱 On an old smartphone: open Settings → The phone. → Backup and reset → Data Transfer (Mi Mover) Select the role "Sender".
• 📱 On a new smartphone: when you first turn on, select Data Portability from the settings menu. If the phone is already configured, the path is the same: Settings → The phone. → Backup → Data transfer, role of “Recipient".
• 🔗 Device pairing: on the old phone will appear QR-Scan it with a new device or type it in. PIN-manually.
• 📤 Data selection: tick categories for transfer (contacts, messages, multimedia, applications) and click "Start transfer".

Charge both phones to at least 50%|Connect to a single Wi-Fi network (or use an access point)|Free up space on the new device (at least 10% free space is required)|Close all background apps on both phones-->

It can take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes depending on the amount of data, and it's important that you don't interrupt the connection or lock the screens, or you'll have to start the transfer all over again.

• 🔒 Wi-Fi passwords (they will have to be re-entered).
• 🎮 Game savers (unless they are synced to your Google Play or Xiaomi Cloud account).
• 📁 Files from folders created by the user (for example, downloads or documents).

2.Cloud Transfer: Xiaomi Cloud and Google Account

If you can’t use Mi Mover (for example, one of the devices won’t turn on), the alternative is cloud backup. Xiaomi Cloud and Google Account let you save data to servers and then restore it to a new phone, a method that is suitable for transferring contacts, calendars, notes and media.

Instructions for Xiaomi Cloud:

1. On your old phone, go to Settings → Xiaomi Account → Mi Cloud.
2. Turn on synchronization for the desired categories (contacts, SMS, photos, records).
3. Wait for the download to complete (the progress is displayed at the top of the screen).
4. On the new phone, log in to the same Xiaomi account and enable sync in the Mi Cloud.

For Google Accounts, the path is similar: Settings → Accounts → Google → Sync. You can move contacts, email, calendar and some app settings.

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Before you move to the cloud, check if there is enough space in your Mi Cloud account. The free plan only gives you 5 GB, and photos in their original quality take up a lot of space. If necessary, buy additional space or compress files before downloading.

The biggest downside of the cloud method is that you have a limit on the amount of time you have, if you have tens of gigabytes of photos, you either have to pay for extra space or you have to use alternative methods, and some data (like saving games) may not automatically sync.

Mi Mover (direct transfer)|Xiaomi Cloud|Google Account|OTG/PC|Another way-->

3. Transfer via OTG cable or computer

If you need to copy large files (4K video, app backups, archives), the best option is to use an OTG cable or computer as an intermediary, a method that is suitable for users who want to manually control what data is being transferred.

Method 1: OTG cable (direct connection)

• 🔌 Buy a cable. OTG plug-in USB-C (Micro-USB, if the old phone has such a port).
• 📱 Connect your old phone to your new phone via cable. On the new device, select File Transfer Mode" (USB-modem).
• 📁 Open a file manager (e.g. Files by Google or standard Explorer) MIUI) And copy the folders you want (DCIM, Downloads, Pictures, etc.).

Method 2: Computer as a mediator

1. Connect your old phone to your PC via USB, select File Transfer mode.
2. Copy all the necessary data to the computer (for example, in a folder on the desktop).
3. Disable the old phone, connect the new one and transfer the files back.

1. Install Mi PC Suite drivers (official software from Xiaomi).

2. switch USB mode to "MTP" in the notification curtain.

3. Use another USB-port (preferably) USB 3.0 for speed).-->

Advantages of this method:

• 🔹 Complete control over the files being transferred (you can choose only the right ones).
• 🔹 There are no limits on volume (except free space on PCs).
• 🔹 It works even if one of the devices is not turned on (it is enough to remove the memory card).

Disadvantages:

• ⚠️ Requires additional devices (cable, PC).
• ⚠️ Apps and data will have to be transferred separately (for example, through Titanium Backup for rooted phones).

4. Applications and their data portability: what you need to know

One of the most difficult aspects of switching to a new phone is to transfer the installed applications and their data. Standard methods (Mi Mover, the cloud) only copy themselves. APK-files, but not save games, or set up messengers or cache. Here's how to fix this problem:

For users (without root rights):

• 🎮 Games: Use built-in sync through Google Play Games or a developer account (e.g., Genshin Impact saves progress in the cloud).
• 💬 Messengers: WhatsApp, Telegram and Viber have a chat export function. For WhatsApp, back up to Settings → chat → Backup and restore it to your new phone.
• 📱 System applications: data from Mi Fit, Mi Home and other Xiaomi services are synchronized through the Mi Account.

For advanced users (with root rights):

If you have root, use Titanium Backup or Swift Backup to create a full backup of applications and their data.

1. Install Titanium Backup from APK (requires root).


2. Start backing up all user applications.




3. Copy the TitaniumBackup folder to your new phone.




4. Restore data through the same application.

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Without root rights, it is impossible to migrate application data completely, the most you can do is synchronize individual services through the cloud or manually export settings (for example, in instant messengers).

Importantly, some apps (like banking apps) will not back up for security reasons, and they will have to be reconfigured.

5. Transfer system settings and personalization

After copying files and applications, the most time-consuming step is to restore customized settings: wallpaper, themes, gestures, screen settings, etc. Unfortunately, Mi Mover only transfers some of the system parameters. Here's what you can do:

Ways to save settings:

• 🎨 Themes and Wallpapers: If you used standard themes MIUI, They're tied to a Xiaomi account and they'll be restored automatically. /Pictures/Wallpapers.
• ⚙️ Screen settings: Write down or take a picture of the current settings (resolution, refresh rate, color profile) in Settings → Screen.
• 🔊 Sound profiles: export custom tunes from /Ringtones and /Notifications.
• 👆 Gestures and buttons: Video the gesture settings (e.g. in Full Screen Gestures) to repeat on your new phone.

You can use screenshots of settings to speed things up, like taking pictures of:

• Settings → Battery → Power mode (to repeat optimization)
• Settings → Applications → Permissions (if you manually configured access to the microphone / camera).
• Settings → Sound (volume media, alarm clock, notifications).

6. Frequent mistakes and how to avoid them

Even when following instructions, users often have problems with data transfer.-5 errors and ways of solving them:

1. Mi Mover is getting stuck on 99% ⚠️ Warning: If the process is stuck in the last phase, don't turn off the phones! Wait 10-15 minutes. If nothing happens, restart both devices and start transferring again by selecting only a portion of the data (e.g. contacts first, then photos).
2. Before transferring, check the free space in Settings → Storage. If there is not enough space, delete unnecessary files or transfer them to a memory card.
3. This happens if you sync them through both Google and Mi Cloud. To fix, open Contacts → Manage → Combine duplicates.
4. Apps are not restored Make sure the new phone has enabled the "App Recovery" option in Settings → Google Account → Sync. If apps are not installed automatically, check your Internet connection.
5. The photos were moved in low quality ⚠️ Warning: If you used Mi Cloud with a free rate, photos could be compressed. To transfer the originals, copy them through the cable. OTG or a folder PC DCIM/Camera.

If none of these methods work, try alternative tools:

• 📲 Clone Phone (Huawei app but also works on Xiaomi).
• 📲 Send Anywhere – Transfer files over Wi-Fi Direct.
• 📲 LocalSend – Open analogue of AirDrop for Android.

7. Transfer data from phone to Xiaomi tablet (and back)

The process of copying data between a smartphone and a Xiaomi tablet (such as the Xiaomi Pad 6) is almost the same as transferring between two phones.

• 📱 Mi Mover: works on tablets, but the interface may look different (for example, on tablets). MIUI For Pad Data Portability Menu Hidden in Settings → System and device → Backup).
• 🖥️ Multi-window mode: If you transfer data to work in Multi-window mode, copy files to the Documents folder - so they will be available in the file manager of the tablet.
• 🎮 Games: tablets may not support some mobile games (due to the lack of Google Mobile Services on some models.

For tablets, the use of Xiaomi Cloud is also relevant, but note that some settings (for example, stylus parameters) are not synchronized and they will have to be reconfigured.

FAQ: Answers to Frequent Questions