How to recover deleted photos on Xiaomi phone: from cart to deep scan

Losing photos on a Xiaomi smartphone is one of the most painful situations for a user. Pictures with important moments, documents or work materials can disappear as a result of accidental clicking, resetting or system failure. Fortunately, in most cases, they can be returned - even if you have already cleaned the basket or formatted a memory card. In this article, we will analyze all the current methods of recovery, from standard MIUI functions to professional tools, taking into account the features of Redmi, POCO and Xiaomi phones.

The rule is, the faster you go, the better the chances of success, and when you delete files, they don't physically disappear, they're just labeled as free space and can be overwritten with new data. So don't install new apps, take photos, or record videos until you've tried to recover what's been lost. SD-Remove it from your phone and connect it to your computer through a card reader – this will reduce the risk of overwriting.

We have tested all of the methods described on Xiaomi 13 Pro, Redmi Note 12 and POCO X5 models with the latest versions of MIUI 14/15 (based on Android 13/14). The methods will work for older devices as well, but some features (such as cloud backup) may not be available on firmware below MIUI 12. If your phone is rooted or has custom firmware, note the special section at the end of the article.

1. Checking the basket in the Xiaomi Gallery

The easiest and fastest way to return deleted photos is to use the built-in Recycle Bin in the standard Gallery app. In MIUI, deleted files are stored there for 30 days (by default), after which they are automatically cleared. If less than a month has passed, the chances of recovery without additional tools are close to 100%.

To find the basket:

• 📱 Open the Gallery app (image with multi-colored squares).
• 🗑️ Slip on three dots in the upper right corner → Select the Recycle Bin (or Remote in Older Versions).
• 🔍 Scroll through the list or search by date/keywords.
• ↩️ Select the desired photo (long press) → press Restore.

If the cart is empty or not on the menu, check the settings:

1. Go to Gallery Settings (three points → Settings).
2. Find the Recycle Bin section and make sure the function is enabled.
3. If the option is disabled, turn it on, but it will not return files that have already been deleted.

⚠️ Note: In some firmware (for example, on the POCO F3 s MIUI 13) The basket is hidden by default. To activate it, go to Settings → Annexes → gallery → Permits and enable access to storage.

2. Recovery via Mi Cloud (Xiaomi Cloud)

If your Xiaomi had Mi Cloud sync enabled, the deleted photos could be saved to the cloud, which works even after you reset your phone to factory settings or replace your device, and the main condition is that you had to log in to your Mi Account and activate the gallery backup.

How to check and restore:

• 🌐 Go to i.mi.com and log in.
• 📁 In the Gallery section, find the Remote or Recycle Bin folder (similar to local storage).
• 🔄 Select files and click Restore. They will return to the main gallery on all synchronized devices.
• 📥 If the photos aren’t in the cloud cart, check the main albums – sometimes the files stay there even after local deletion.

If the photos are not in the cloud, but sync has been enabled, try restoring an older version of the backup:

1. On the Mi Cloud website, go to Settings → Devices → Backups.
2. Select the backup created before the photo is deleted and click Restore.
3. Please indicate that you only need to return the Gallery (so as not to overwrite other data).

⚠️ Warning: If you delete photos from the cloud cart or you turn off sync before they are deleted, this method will not work.

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Before recovering from Mi Cloud, check the free space on your phone — if it isn’t enough, files won’t boot. Free up memory or transfer the photo to a memory card.

3. Computer connection and specialized programs

If the photos aren’t found in the cart and cloud, the next step is to connect the phone to your computer and scan the memory with professional tools, a technique that works for all Xiaomi models, including Redmi and POCO, but requires caution: wrong actions can lead to a complete overwriting of deleted data.

You'll need:

• 🖥️ Computer with Windows or macOS.
• 🔌 USB Type C C Cable (original or certified).
• 🛠️ Recovery software: DiskDigger, Recuva, EaseUS MobiSaver or Tenorshare UltData.
• ⚡ Adequate battery charge (>50%).

Step-by-step:

1. Enable USB debugging (unless the phone is defined as a drive):
2. Connect your phone to your PC and select File Transfer (MTP) mode.
3. Install and run a program (e.g., DiskDigger).
4. Select the phone’s drive (usually Internal Storage) and run a deep scan.
5. After completing, mark the desired photos (.jpg,.png,.heic formats) and save them to your PC.

Features for Xiaomi:

• 🔒 On some models (e.g. Xiaomi) 12T) need to unlock OEM In the developer settings, otherwise the program will not see the memory.
• 📱 If the phone is not identified, try another cable or port. USB 3.0.
• ⏳ Deep scanning can take hours – don’t interrupt the process.

Debugging is on. USB|The phone is over 50 times charged%|The original cable is used.|The program is downloaded from the official website|There is enough room on the PC to save files.-->

4. Reconstruction of c SD-cards (if the photo is stored on it)

If the photos were on a microSD, the chances of their return are higher than when stored in internal memory. Memory cards are less likely to be fragmented, and deleted files remain intact longer. For recovery, it is better to use a card reader to minimize the risk of overwriting.

Algorithm of action:

1. Remove the card from your phone and paste it into a card reader connected to your PC.
2. Run a recovery program (e.g., PhotoRec for advanced users or Wondershare Recoverit for beginners).
3. Select a memory card from the list of devices and start the scan.
4. After completion, filter the results by formats (.jpg,.png,.raw) and save the files to the hard drive.

Xiaomi card nuances:

• 📷 ExFAT cards (used in new models) recover worse than FAT32.
• 🔄 If the card was formatted in the phone, select the option Restore after formatting in the program.
• 🚫 Don’t save the recovered files back to the map – it could damage them.

⚠️ Note: If the memory card is encrypted (e.g. via Settings) → Warehouse → Encrypt SD-The card, standard programs will not be able to read the data, in which case only a backup copy or specialized services (for example, Elcomsoft) will help).

5.Using Google Photos Backups

Many Xiaomi users are setting up automatic uploads of photos to Google Photos without even knowing it. If you have this app installed on your phone and have backup enabled, check it before using paid programs.

How to restore:

• 🌐 Open photos.google.com in your browser or Google Photos app on your phone.
• 🗑️ Go to the Recycle Bin (photos are stored there for 60 days).
• 🔍 Use a search by date or keyword (e.g. beach 2023).
• 📥 Select the desired files and click Restore or Download.

If the photo is not in the cart, but the backup was turned on:

1. Click on the avatar → Photo film.
2. Scroll down to the date the photo was still on the phone.
3. If the files are found, download them or return them to the main gallery.

Features for Xiaomi:

• 📱 On some models (e.g. Redmi Note 11), Google Photos default to a reduced quality photo (High Quality option). Originals can only be restored if the original quality mode has been selected.
• 🔄 If you deleted photos from Google Photos more than 60 days ago, they are permanently lost.

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Google Photos is the most reliable way to back up Xiaomi, as it works independently of MIUI and does not require a binding to a Mi Account.

Specific cases: rooted phones and custom firmware

If your Xiaomi has an unlocked bootloader, root rights, or custom firmware (like LineageOS, Pixel Experience), standard recovery methods may not work.

Method 1: Recovery through TWRP

• 🔧 Install. TWRP Recovery (if not already installed).
• 📱 Get into Recovery Mode (Power) + Vol Up).
• 💾 Go to Advanced. → File Manager and find the folder /data/media/0/DCIM or /sdcard.
• 🔍 Use the built-in file manager to find deleted files (they can stay in folders with the.trash extension).

Method 2: Using ADB

If the phone is defined in ADB but not as a drive, try extracting files via the command line:

adb shell


su




cd /data/media/0/DCIM




ls -la

If the folder exists, copy its contents to the PC:

adb pull /data/media/0/DCIM/ C:\Xiaomi_Recovery

Method 3: Recovery through NAND-backup

If you have a /data partition backup made through TWRP or OrangeFox, you can extract photos from it using tools like TWRP Image Extractor.

⚠️ Note: On Dynamic Partition phones (such as Xiaomi 12 and later), standard methods of extracting data from backups may not work.

7.If nothing has worked: Professional services

When all independent methods are exhausted, you have to go to specialized laboratories.

• 💔 Photographs are of critical value (e.g., single shots from an important event).
• 🔧 Phone is physically damaged (drowned, memory broken).
• 🔒 The data is encrypted and you don’t remember the password.

What the services offer:

How to choose a service:

• 🔍 Look for labs with clean rooms (to work with damaged storage devices).
• 📄 Require a contract with an indication of the cost and timing.
• 🛡️ Check reviews on independent sites (for example, Otzovic, Yandex.Maps).
• 💰 Beware of prepayment – reliable services only take money after the result.

For example, recovering a photo from a Xiaomi Mi 11 after falling into the water will be cheaper than decrypting data from the Redmi K50, which included File-Based Encryption (FBE) hardware protection.

FAQ: Frequent questions about photo recovery on Xiaomi