How to reduce applications on Xiaomi: cleaning the cache, compression APK and other ways

Your Xiaomi smartphone again shows a warning about memory shortages, even though you deleted all unnecessary photos and videos long ago?The problem often lies not in media files, but in bloated applications that take up gigabytes of space. Cache, temporary files, updates and unoptimized APKs can eat up to 30-50% of internal memory - even if the programs themselves are almost unnecessary.

In this article, we’ll break down 7 proven ways to reduce the size of applications on Xiaomi devices (including models on MIUI 14/15 and HyperOS).

• 🧹 Clear cache and data without removing programs
• 📦 Squeeze. APK-Files and Remove Unnecessary Components
• 🔄 Reverse updates to “gluttonous” applications
• 🛠️ Use hidden functions MIUI optimize memory

All of the methods tested on the Redmi Note 12 Pro+, Poco X5 Pro and Xiaomi 13 Ultra are suitable for most of the brand’s current devices. Importantly, some operations require root or ADB rights, but we’ll show you where to do without them.

1. Cleaning the cache and application data

The fastest way to free up 1-5 GB of memory is to delete the accumulated cache. Unlike completely removing the program, cleaning the cache does not affect the settings and stored data (for example, logins in messengers or progress in games).

How to do this:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select a program (such as YouTube or Facebook).
3. Press Warehouse. → Clear the cache.
4. For deep cleaning tap Clean data (⚠️ This will reset all the settings of the application!).

Pay particular attention to:

• 🎮 Games (Genshin Impact, PUBG Mobile – their cache can weigh up to 10 GB)
• 📺 Media applications (TikTok, Instagram, Netflix)
• 🗺️ Maps (Google Maps, Yandex.Maps – cache of offline maps takes hundreds of megabytes)

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If the cache accumulates again quickly after cleaning, limit the application’s background activity in the battery settings (Settings → Battery → Application Selection).

For automatic cleaning, use the built-in MIUI tool:

1. Go to Settings → Memory → Cleanup.
2. Activate the Deep Clean option.
3. Select Clean (the system will prompt you to delete the cache, temporary files and residual data of the deleted programs).

2. Removal of unnecessary components from APK (without root)

Many applications are installed with “extra” files: localizations for 50 languages, graphics for different screen resolutions or advertising SDKs. On Xiaomi, you can remove these components without root rights using the APK Editor tool or built-in MIUI functions.

Method 1: Using MIUI Optimizer (Hidden Function):

1. Activate Developer Mode: Settings → About Phone → MIUI version (shap 7 times).
2. Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
3. Turn on USB debugging and connect the phone to the PC.
4. Enter the ADB command: adb shell pm compile -m speed-profile -f com.example.app (replace com.example.app with a batch name for the application, for example com.facebook.katana for Facebook).

Method 2: APK Editor Pro (Take Care!):

• 📌 Download. APK Editor Pro from Google Play.
• 🔍 Select an editing app (such as WhatsApp).
• ✂️ Remove folders with unnecessary localizations (res/values-es/, res/values-fr/ etc., leaving only the values-ru/ or values-en/.
• 💾 Save the changed. APK And set it on top of the old one.

Backup the original APK (e.g. via APK Extractor)

Make sure you have enough space for temporary files.

Turn off automatic update of the application in Google Play>

Close all background processes of the edited application-->

⚠️ Attention: Editing APK This can cause app failures or account locks (e.g., in banking services).Do not change system applications (Mi Home, Security) - this can disrupt the work of the system. MIUI.

3. rollback of updates to “gluttonous” applications

Some programs after the updates begin to take up many times more space. For example, Google Chrome versions 115+ weighs ~200 MB, while the version 100 – only 80 MB. On Xiaomi, you can roll back such applications to previous versions.

Instructions:

1. Download the old version of APK from a reliable source (e.g. APKMirror).
2. Remove the current version of the app.
3. Install the downloaded APK (allow installation from unknown sources in Settings → Applications → Special Access).
4. Turn off automatic updates in Google Play:

Examples of apps worth rolling back:

⚠️ Note: Backtracking versions may lead to security issues (vulnerabilities in older versions) or incompatibility with the current version of Android).

YouTube|Facebook|Games (Genshin Impact, PUBG etc.)|Google Chrome|TikTok|Other-->

4.Using the Light Mode function in MIUI

MIUI 14/15 and HyperOS have a hidden “Light Mode” feature that optimizes application performance by reducing application size and resource consumption, an option that is especially useful for devices with low RAM (4-6 GB).

How to turn on:

1. Go to Settings. → Special facilities.
2. Select Light Mode (on some firmware, the option is called Lightweight Mode).
3. Activate the switch and restart the device.

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Light mode is most effective on devices with 4-6 GB of RAM (for example, the Redmi Note 10 or Poco X3 Pro). On flagships (Xiaomi 13T, Mix Fold 3), the difference in performance will be minimal.

5. Transfer of applications to a memory card (with restrictions)

Many Xiaomi users are trying to solve the memory problem by migrating applications to microSD, but in modern versions of Android and MIUI, this feature does not work for all programs and has limitations.

How to transfer the application to the map:

1. Insert microSD (UHS-I U3 or higher is recommended).
2. Format it as an internal memory (⚠️ This will remove all data from the card!: Settings → Memory. → Map. SD → Set up as an internal
3. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
4. Select the program and click Storage → Change → SD card.

Important: Once formatted as internal memory, the card cannot be used on other devices without completely erasing the data.

Which applications can be transferred:

• ✅ Most Games (Clash of Clans, Brawl Stars)
• ✅ Media players (VLC, MX Player)
• ✅ Some messengers (Telegram, but not WhatsApp!)

Which applications cannot be moved:

• ❌ System applications (Google Play Services, Miui Home)
• ❌ Annexes with DRM-Protection (Netflix, Disney)+)
• ❌ Banking applications (Sberbank Online, Tinkoff)

6. Removal of pre-installed applications (bloatwer)

Xiaomi is known for installing dozens of unnecessary programs on its smartphones, from duplicate services (Mi Browser + Google Chrome) to advertising utilities (Mi Pay, Mi Credit), which take up space and cannot be removed by standard methods.

Methods of removing the bloatver:

No root:

• 🛑 Disabling (does not delete files, but frees RAM):
• 🧹 Removal through ADB:

From root:

• 🗑️ Complete removal via Root Explorer or Titanium Backup.
• 🔧 Use of Debloater scripts (e.g. Universal Android Debloater).

List of safe apps to remove on Xiaomi:

⚠️ Warning: Do not delete system applications with the names com.android., com.miui. or com.google.* - this may cause your smartphone to fail! XDA Developers or 4PDA.

7. Optimization through energy saving modes

The MIUI’s energy saving modes not only save battery life, but also reduce the size of temporary files by limiting background activity, which is especially useful for applications that are constantly synced (like Google Photos or Dropbox).

How to set up:

1. Go to Settings → Battery → Energy Saving Mode.
2. Choose Balanced or Super Energy Saving.
3. In the App Selection section, add programs that shouldn’t work in the background (e.g. Facebook, TikTok).
4. Activate the option to clean up memory when you lock.

What does it mean?

• 📉 Reducing the size of the cache by 20-30% by limiting background synchronization.
• 🚫 Blocking Automatic Video Playback in Social Media.
• 🔄 Forced cleaning of RAM when blocking the screen (releases to the 1-2 GB on devices with 8+ GB RAM).

Limitations:

• ❌ Notifications may be delayed (for example, on WhatsApp or Telegram).
• ❌ Some features will stop working in the background (for example, tracking activity in Google Fit).

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Super Power Saving Mode is the most aggressive cache cleaner, but can interfere with the work of instant messengers. To balance, choose Balanced Mode and manually add critical applications to the exceptions (for example, Bank Online).

FAQ: Frequent questions