How to Delete Messages on Xiaomi to Free Your Memory: 5 Proven Ways

The memory clog on Xiaomi is a problem that every second user faces, and it is especially acute when the system starts issuing warnings about space shortages and favorite apps stop updating: SMS, MMS, Chats in instant messengers and even service notifications from banks, accumulating hundreds or even thousands of them, taking up gigabytes of precious space.

In this article, we will discuss how to effectively delete messages on Xiaomi without losing important information. MIUI, We'll also find out why sometimes when you delete the memory, when you back it up, even how to automate the cleaning process, and why sometimes the memory doesn't get released after you delete it, and what to do about it.

Spoiler: just clicking "Delete Everything" in the Messages app is not enough, POCO Xiaomi flagships to clean up without failures.

Why posts take up so much memory on Xiaomi

At first glance, textual SMS It's a tiny bit of crumbs, a few kilobytes, but in practice, even with a neat user, the Messages app can swell up to 1 or 3 GB?

Here are the main reasons:

• 📸 MMS And media: photos, videos and voice messages in chat rooms weigh hundreds of times more than text, for example, one video that is 30 seconds long takes 10 to 20 MB of average quality.
• 🗄️ Cash and temporary files: MIUI It stores thumbnails, previews and service data to quickly display chats. Over time, this garbage accumulates.
• 🔄 Duplicates and Backups: Some apps (like Google Messages) automatically create backups that are stored in the device’s memory.
• 📊 System notifications: SMS Banks, operators and services (such as payment confirmations) are often not removed for years.

Another nuance: on Xiaomi with MIUI 12-14 messages can be stored not only in a standard application, but also in a:

• 📱 Google Messages (if installed as a default application)
• 💬 Mi Manager (service notifications of the system)
• 🔒 Secure folder (if message encryption is enabled)

⚠️ Note: If you use Dual Apps, messages in cloned versions of WhatsApp, Telegram or Viber take up memory separately.

Method 1: Delete messages through a standard application

The most obvious method is to clean through the built-in Messages app, but even here there are pitfalls.

1. Open the Messages app (an envelope icon).
2. Click on the three dots in the top right corner and select Settings.
3. Go to the Message Management section → Clearing of messages.
4. Check the boxes for unnecessary dialogues or select All messages.
5. Click Delete and confirm the action.

If you need to delete messages selectively:

• Hold your finger in any dialogue. → will be the mode of selection.
• Mark the desired chats or individual messages.
• Click on the basket icon at the top.

Nana MIUI 14: A smart cleaning function is introduced: the system itself offers to delete old messages (over 6 months) and duplicates:

1. Go to Settings. → Annexes → Communications → Warehouse.
2. Click Clear Cache and Manage Data.
3. Turn on the Auto Clean option.

Only unnecessary dialogues are noted.|Backup of important messages made|Spam and Drafts folders checked"|Disabled auto-save media in the gallery-->

After deleting, remember to restart your phone, which will help the system to free up memory correctly. If the space is not vacant, read the next section.

Method 2: Clearing the cache and data of the Messages application

Sometimes messages are deleted and memory is still occupied, and the cache and temporary files that are used are the cause. MIUI It doesn't always clean automatically. Here's how to fix it:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find the Posts list (or Google Messages if used).
3. Go to the Warehouse.
4. Click Clear the cache and Clear the data.

⚠️ Attention: Cleaning up the data will delete all messages irrevocably, including drafts and app settings! Pre-backup (about this in method 4).

If the Clear Data button is inactive, it means that the application is system.

• Launch Security → Cleanup → Deep cleaning.
• Select Messages and confirm the cleanup.

On some models (Redmi Note 11, POCO X4 Pro) after cleaning the cache, the memory is not immediately released:

• Open the Settings. → The phone. → Press 7 times on the version MIUI, to activate the Developer Mode.
• Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
• Find the option Do not save actions and turn it on, which will cause the system to immediately release memory after deleting files.

Method 3: Delete media files from messages

As we've already found, the main weights in messages are photos, videos and voice, and they can be deleted selectively without touching text. SMS. Here's how to do it:

In the standard annex, the Communications:

1. Open the dialogue with the media files.
2. Click on the gallery (or media) icon in the top menu.
3. Select unnecessary files and delete them one by one or in packs.

On Google Messages:

1. Open the chat room. → Click on the interlocutor's avatar.
2. Select Media, Files and Links.
3. Mark the files and click Delete.

If there are too many media files, use the guide:

1. Open the Files (or Explorer)
2. Go to the Internal Storage folder → Android → data → com.android.mms → cache.
3. Delete all files manually (they may have.jpg extensions,.mp4,.amr).

In order to avoid memory loss in future media:

• 📁 Turn off autosave in the messenger settings (for example, in WhatsApp: Settings) → chat → Visibility of media files).
• 🔄 Set up automatic deletion of old files (in Google Messages: Settings) → Deletion of old messages).
• ☁️ Save important files to the cloud (Google Photos, Mi Cloud) instead of your phone’s memory.

Method 4: Backup and reset messages

Before mass deletion of messages, make sure to backup. This will save you from losing important ones. SMS (For example, with confirmation codes or bank notifications, here's how to save messages:

Method 1: Through Google Drive (for Google Messages)

1. Open Google Messages → three-point → Settings → Backup.
2. Turn on the option and select a Google account.
3. Click Create a backup copy now.

Method 2: Through MIUI Backup (for standard application)

1. Open Settings → About the phone → Backup.
2. Select Local Backup.
3. Check Messages and click Start.

Method 3: Manually through SMS Backup & Restore

If standard methods don’t work, install the app. SMS Backup & Restore from Google Play:

1. Launch the application and allow access to SMS.
2. Click Create a Backup and select the format (XML or CSV).
3. Save the file to Google Drive or to your phone’s memory.

Once you've created a backup, you can delete messages, and if you need them, you can easily recover them, for example, to return them. SMS backup MIUI Backup:

1. Go to Settings → About Phone → Backup.
2. Select the right backup and click Restore.
3. Mark the messages and confirm.

💡

If the backup takes up too much space, compress it into the archive. ZIP It's going to be done through any file manager, like MiXplorer, and it's going to reduce the size by 30 to 50%.

Method 5: Automatically cleansing messages

To avoid manually cleaning messages, set up automatic deletion, which will save time and prevent memory overflow.

In the standard annex, the Communications:

1. Open the Settings. → Communications management.
2. Select Autodelete Old Messages.
3. Set a period (e.g. 6 months) and confirm.

On Google Messages:

1. Go to Settings. → Additionally. → Deletion of old messages.
2. Turn on the option and select a time limit (from 3 months to 1 year).

Automate (for advanced users)

If you need flexible settings (e.g., remove) SMS from certain numbers, use the Automate app:

1. Create a new stream (Flow).
2. Add the block. SMS received (conditions) and Delete SMS (action).
3. Set up filters (for example, remove them) SMS past 30 days).

Nana MIUI 14: Smart Cleanup, which itself suggests that you delete unnecessary files, including messages, to activate it:

1. Open Security. → Cleanup.
2. Enable the Auto Clean option and select Messages in the list.

💡

Automatic cleaning does not remove messages from banks and confirmation services (e.g, SMS For them, set up exceptions manually.

What to do if memory is not released after deletion

Sometimes messages are deleted, the cache is cleared, and there is no more space. What is the reason and how can we fix it?

Possible problems and solutions:

• 🔄 The system did not have time to update the data: Restart the phone or wait 10-15 minutes.
• 🗑️ Files left in the basket: In some firmware, deleted messages end up in the Recycle Bin (check in Files) → Basket).
• 📱 Mistake in work MIUI: Clear the system cache through Settings → Annexes → All applications → Three points. → Show system-based → Android System → Clear the cache.

If nothing helps, try a forced cleanup:

1. Install Storage Analyzer.
2. Scan the memory for junk files from com.android.mms.
3. Delete the temporary files found manually.

⚠️ Note: On some models (Redmi) 9A, POCO M3) After mass deletion of messages, the error "Com.android.mms process is stopped" may appear. To fix it, clear the Messages application data (see Method 2) and restart the phone.

On Xiaomi MIUI 13+ After deleting messages, the memory is not immediately released, the system can reserve space for new data. To speed up the process, run any resource-intensive application (for example, a game), and then check the free space again.

FAQ: Frequent questions about deleting messages on Xiaomi