How to delete all photos on Xiaomi: from gallery to cloud

Deleting photos from Xiaomi’s smartphone only seems like a simple task at first glance. Even after cleaning the gallery, files can remain in the app cache, Mi Cloud backups,.thumbnails folders or on a memory card. And if you sell a phone, conventional formatting is not enough – you can restore erased images in 5 minutes using free utilities like DiskDigger or Recuva.

In this article, 5 proven methods to delete all photos on Xiaomi without recovery, including hidden system copies. The instructions are relevant for devices on MIUI 12-15 (including Redmi, Poco and Black Shark), and take into account the peculiarities of working with Google Photos, Mi Cloud and external drives. If you need not just to vacate space, but guaranteed to erase confidential data, read on.

Why Standard Removal Doesn't Work

When you click "Delete" in the Gallery or Google Photos app, the files don't physically disappear.

• 📁 Moved to the Recycle Bin folder (stored for 30 days by default)
• 🔄 Stay in the thumbnail cache (/storage/emulated/0/DCIM/.thumbnails)
• ☁️ Sync with Mi Cloud or Google Photos (if Autoboot is enabled)
• 🔧 Can be duplicated in application folders (/Android/data/com.miui.gallery)

Moreover, even after cleaning the basket and cache, the data remains on the flash memory until new files are written on top of it, due to the peculiarities of the F2FS file system (used in most Xiaomi smartphones), which requires a rewriting of sectors to completely delete, which is how programs for irrevocable erasure work.

⚠️ Note: If you plan to sell or transfer a phone, one factory reset is not enough.Use the safe erasure method (section 4) to rule out data recovery.

Method 1: Manual deletion through Gallery and File Manager

This method is suitable if you need to free up space quickly, but does not guarantee complete deletion (files will remain in the cloud and cache).

1. Open the Gallery app → click on the three dots in the upper right corner → Cart → Clean.
2. Go to the File Explorer → Categories → Images.
3. Select all files (long-press → ticks) → click Delete → confirm.
4. Clear the gallery cache: Settings → Applications → Application Management → Gallery → Storage → Clear the cache.

To remove thumbnails (smaller copies of photos) that take up to 1-2 GB:

1. Open File Manager → go to /storage/emulated/0/DCIM/.thumbnails.
2. Delete all files in this folder (they have the.thumbdata extension).

Delete photos from Gallery Cart

Clear the Images folder in the File Manager

Delete the Gallery app cache

Erase miniatures from.thumbnails

Check folders /Android/data/com.miui.gallery-->

Method 2: Remove via Mi Cloud and Google Photos

If your Xiaomi has cloud sync enabled, photos can be stored there even after being deleted from your phone to erase them completely:

For Mi Cloud:

1. Open Settings → Mi Account → Mi Cloud → Gallery
2. Click on three points → Photo Management → Highlight everything → Delete.
3. Go to the Mi Cloud Recycle Bin (available at i.mi.com) and clean it up.

For Google Photos:

1. Open the Google Photos app → Photos → Click on the avatar → Cart → Clean the cart.
2. To disable autoboot: Settings → Backup and Synchronization → Transfer the slider to the Off position..

Important: Once removed from the cloud, photos will disappear from all devices that sync. If you want to save copies, download them to your computer first.

Method 3: Irreversible Deletion via Safe Erase (for sale of phone)

If you’re going to sell or transfer a phone, use secure erasure — it overwrites memory sectors with random data, making recovery impossible. Xiaomi has a built-in Safe Erase feature (not available on all models).

Instructions:

1. Back up your important data (reverse erasure will delete everything!).
2. Go to Settings → About Phone → Settings Reset → Erase All Data (Safe Erase).
3. Enter the password from the Mi Account (if linked).
4. Confirm the action - the process will take 10-30 minutes.

If you do not have a Safe Erase option, use an alternative method:

1. Install the Secure Erase app from Google Play (e.g. iShredder).
2. Select DoD 5220.22-M (3 rewrite passes) for maximum reliability.
3. Start the process – it can take several hours.

⚠️ Attention: On devices with MIUI 14+ and Snapdragon chipsets 8 Gen 2/3 (for example, Xiaomi 13/14 Pro) embedded data encryption (FBE) It can block third-party programs for safe erasure, in which case use Safe Erase or reset via Fastboot (partition) 5).

Method 4: Complete Fastboot reset (for power users)

This method is guaranteed to delete all data, including photos, apps and system settings. Suitable for devices where Safe Erase is not working, or if the phone is locked. ADB/Fastboot.

Step-by-step:

1. Turn off the phone → Press Volume Down + Power to log into the Fastboot.
2. Connect your phone to your computer via USB.
3. Open the command line (Win + R → enter cmd) and execute: fastboot devices If the device is defined, type: fastboot erase userdata fastboot erase cache fastboot format userdata fastboot format cache
4. Reboot the phone: fastboot reboot

After this procedure, the phone will be like new, with no photos, accounts or apps.Warning: Some models (such as the Redmi Note 12 Pro+) may require unlocking the bootloader.

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If the phone does not turn on after reset via Fastboot, try flashing stock firmware through the Mi Flash Tool. You can download the firmware on the official Xiaomi website.

Method 5: Delete photos from memory card (SD/microSD)

If the photos are stored on a memory card, their removal has nuances:

• 🔄 Standard formatting via phone does not erase data permanently.
• 🛡️ For complete cleaning, use full formatting (not fast!) on your computer.
• 🔧 On some maps (class) A1/A2) You may need special software like this. SD Card Formatter.

Instructions for Windows:

1. Connect the memory card to the computer through the card reader.
2. Open This Computer → Right-click on the map → Format.
3. Select the exFAT file system (if the card is >64GB) or FAT32.
4. Take the snag off the fast (clearing table of contents) → click Start.

For irrevocable removal, use the DiskPart utility:

1. Run the command line on behalf of the administrator.
2. Type: Diskpart list disk select disk X (where X is your card number) clean all create partition primary format fs=exfat quick

⚠️ Warning: Clean all and format commands destroy all data without recovery!

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Formatting a memory card via your phone (Settings → Storage → SD Card → Format) DOES NOT guarantee complete deletion of files. Use your computer for reliable cleaning.

How to Check if Your Photos Have Been Deleted Completely

To make sure that the images are not left in the system, follow the following steps:

1. Check the hidden folders: /storage/emulated/0/Pictures /storage/emulated/0/DCIM/.thumbnails /Android/data/com.miui.gallery /Android/obb/ (sometimes cached images from games are stored here)

Use a root file manager (such as FX File Explorer or Solid Explorer) to scan the system for files with the.jpg,.png,.heic extensions.

Install DiskUsage from Google Play, which visualizes the space occupied and helps you find the “forgotten” files.

For deep verification, connect your phone to your computer and use PhotoRec (which is part of TestDisk), which scans the memory at the sector level and even finds deleted files.

If you are selling a phone, you should also:

• 🔍 Check if your Mi Account is tied (Settings) → Mi Account).
• 🔐 Make sure that the Find Device function is disabled (Settings) → Google → Security → Find My Device).

FAQ: Frequent questions about photos removal on Xiaomi