How to Recover Deleted Photos on Xiaomi Phone: A Complete 2026 Guide

Removed important photos from a Xiaomi, Redmi or POCO phone — and now you don't know how to get them back? Don't panic: in most cases, you can recover them even if you cleaned your cart or formatted your memory card. In this article, we'll look at all the current ways to return deleted photos, from standard MIUI features to professional tools.

The rule of thumb is that the faster you start, the better the chances of success. When you delete files, they don't disappear immediately from the media, they're just labeled as "free space" and can be overwritten with new data. So don't save new files to your phone or install applications until you've finished recovering them.

We have tested all methods on Xiaomi 13 Pro, Redmi Note 12 and POCO X5 models with the latest MIUI (14-15) instructions are versatile and will be suitable for most of the brand’s devices released after 2018.

1.Check the basket at MIUI Gallery

The standard Gallery app on Xiaomi automatically sends deleted photos to the shopping cart, where they are stored for 30 days (some models have 15 days), the first and easiest way to return photos.

How to restore:

• 📱 Open the Gallery app (Icon with Camera).
• 🗑️ Slip on three dots in the upper right corner → pick the basket.
• 🔍 Scroll down the list or search by date.
• ✅ Select the desired photo (long press) → press Restore.

If the basket is empty or you have already cleaned it, move on to the next method. Note: some versions of MIUI (for example, on POCO F5) may not show the basket in the main menu - in this case, try swiping left in the gallery or find the.trash folder through the file manager.

2.Recovery through MI Cloud backups

If your Xiaomi has MI Cloud sync enabled, the deleted photos could be saved to the cloud, which works even after you reset your phone to factory settings.

How to check:

• ☁️ Go to Settings. → Xiaomi account → MI Cloud.
• 📸 Select the Gallery or Photos section.
• 🔍 Check the folders Remote or Archives – there may be your pictures.
• 💾 To restore, click on the photo → Download or Restore to the Device.

Important: the free MI Cloud tariff only provides 5GB of storage. If the backup wasn't automatically created, try to remember if you've enabled manual sync. Also check the MIUI/Backup/AllBackup folder through the file manager - sometimes local copies are saved there.

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To avoid losing photos in the future, enable automatic synchronization: Settings → Xiaomi Account → MI Cloud → Gallery → Auto Sync. Select the resolution Original for quality preservation.

3. Use of Google Photos (if reservations were enabled)

Many Xiaomi users set up a photo backup in Google Photos. If you've logged in to a Google account and enabled this feature, the chances of returning photos are very high.

Instructions:

1. Open the Google Photos app (if not, download from the Play Market).
2. Sign in with the same Google account that was linked to your phone.
3. Go to the Library → Recycle Bin (photos are stored there for 60 days).
4. To restore, select files → click Restore.

If the cart is empty, check the main feed or search by date/people/place. Note: Google Photos compresses images when booking in High Quality (free), but saves the originals in Original Quality (requires payment for space).

4. PC Recovery with DiskDigger or Recuva

If you don't find photos in the cart or cloud, you'll have to connect your phone to your computer and use specialized software, and we recommend DiskDigger (for Android) or Recuva (for memory cards).

Step-by-step instructions for DiskDigger:

• 🖥️ Download and install DiskDigger on PC (Windows).
• 📱 Turn on the phone to debug. USB (Settings → The phone. → Version. MIUI → 7 times tap the version number → return to → For developers → Debugging by USB).
• 🔌 Connect your phone to your PC via cable (select File Transfer Mode).
• 🔍 In DiskDigger, select your phone. → press Next → specify the search format (JPG, PNG).
• 💾 After scanning, select the necessary photos. → Recover Selected.

Recovery from a memory card (microSD):

1. Remove the card from your phone and connect it to your PC via a card reader.
2. Run Recuva → Select a map → Specify the type of Image files.
3. After scanning, mark the photo with a green circle (the highest chance of recovery).

Disable Wi-Fi and mobile data on your phone

Charge your phone at least 50%

Use the original USB-cable

Do not connect your phone to other devices during the process-->

⚠️ Warning: Do not save recovered files to the same medium you are recovering them from! Use a different disk or cloud to avoid overwriting data.

5. Manual recovery via file manager (for power users)

Deleted photos can remain in hidden folders of the phone until they are completely overwritten, and to find them, you will need a file manager with access to root directories (for example, MiXplorer or Solid Explorer).

Where to look:

How to find:

1. Install MiXplorer from Play Market.
2. Enable the display of hidden files (in the manager settings).
3. Follow these paths and look for files with the extensions.jpg,.png,.heic.
4. Copy the photo to a safe place (for example, on a PC).

⚠️ Warning: Do not rename or move files directly into these folders, which can disrupt the system. Always copy data, not cut it out!

6. Professional services (if nothing helps)

If the photos are critical (for example, they are the only pictures from an important event) and self-recovery failed, contact a specialized laboratory. They use professional equipment to extract data from flash memory.

What the services offer:

• 🔬 Chip-off recovery – extracting data directly from the memory chip (suitable for phones with damaged logic structure).
• 🛠️ Hardware recovery – repair of the memory controller with subsequent data copying.
• 🔍 Deep analysis – Finding fragments of files even after formatting.

The cost of such services starts from 5 000 rubles and depends on the complexity of the work.

• Data recovery lab Flashback (working with Xiaomi and Qualcomm Snapdragon).
• Data Recovery Center (specializes in smartphones with MediaTek).
• Official Xiaomi service centers (not all provide the service, check by phone).

Please specify before contacting:

• Does it work with your Xiaomi model (for example, the Redmi Note 11 has a different type of memory than the Xiaomi 12T).
• Is there a guarantee of confidentiality (your photos should not fall into third hands)
• Time of execution (on average - from 3 to 10 days).

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Professional recovery is the only chance to return a photo after a complete formatting or physical damage to the phone, but the cost may exceed the price of the device itself.

How to Prevent Photo Loss in the Future

To avoid the problem of deleted photos, set up automatic backup and follow the simple rules:

Cloud services:

• ☁️ Enable autosynchronization in MI Cloud and Google Photos (Simultaneously for Reliability).
• 📅 Set up Wi-Fi reservations in Settings → Xiaomi account → MI Cloud → Synchronization settings.

Local copies:

• 💾 Once a month, copy a photo to a PC or external disk via Mi. PC Suite.
• 📁 Use microSD class memory cards A2 or U3 backup.

Additional measures:

• 🔒 Set the password on the folder. DCIM Safe Folder in Google Files.
• 🚫 Avoid “scraping garbage” apps – they often remove the thumbnail gallery cache.

It's also useful to know:

• Photos in HEIC format (used on the new Xiaomi) take up less space, but not all programs support them. Convert them to JPG through Gallery Settings → Save Format.
• When resetting your phone to factory settings, select Save Media Data (if available).

FAQ: Frequent questions about photo recovery on Xiaomi