Xiaomi Keyboard Takes a Lot of Space: Why It Happens and How to Fix It

You opened the Xiaomi phone settings to free up some space, and found that the keyboard – whether it’s standard MIUI Google's Keyboard or Gboard -- hundreds of megabytes, maybe a few gigabytes -- is not a system bug or a virus, and there are several reasons for this behavior, and most of them are related to the way that today's Android keyboards work:

Why does the keyboard accumulate data (spoiler: it’s not always cache)

What files inflate its volume and can they be safely deleted;

How to reduce the space without losing predictive input and synchronization

Alternative solutions for users who are critically interested in saving memory.

Important: Cleaning and optimization methods are different MIUI Keyboard (built into firmware) and Gboard (installed from Play Market) will be considered both options.

1. Cash vs. User Data: What exactly takes up space?

The first thing that comes to mind when you see a bloated keyboard is to clear the cache, but often it's temporary or it doesn't work at all, because the keyboard stores two types of data:

• 🗑️ Cache – temporary files to speed up work (e.g., preloaded emojis or fonts) Cleared without consequences, but restored the next time you use it.
• 📊 User data is the input history, the trained words, the personalized suggestions and the synchronized settings, and deleting it will reset the keyboard to a factory state.

To see the exact data section, go to Settings → Annexes → Application management → [Keyboard name] → Storage. You'll see two lines there: Cash and Data. Here's a typical Gboard distribution after a year of use:

🔍 Tip: If the Data section is more than 1GB, it's likely that the keyboard keeps a full input history (including deleted messages) that's useful for predictions, but not necessarily for work.

2.The main reasons for the "bloating" of the keyboard

Let’s look at 6 key factors that make the keyboard on Xiaomi take up gigabytes of memory. Not all of them are obvious!

2.1. Synchronization with the account Google/Mi

If you're signed into a Google account or Mi Account, the keyboard can store your entire login history in the cloud and locally, and Gboard syncs data more aggressively than it does. MIUI Keyboard.

📌 How to check: Go to the keyboard settings (Settings) → System system → Language and input → [Your keyboard] → Dictionary/Personalization) and look for items like Data Synchronization or Backup.

2.2 Learned dictionary and predictions

The keyboard remembers:

• 💬 Slang, jargon, names (even those that are not in the standard dictionary);
• 📱 Message templates (e.g., “I’m on the way,” “How much is it worth?»);
• 🔤 Misprints that you often allow and correct.

Over time, this database grows to hundreds of megabytes, especially if you write a lot on messengers or social networks.

2.3. Downloaded languages and layouts

Each additional language takes 10 to 50 MB. If you’ve added Chinese, Arabic, or Japanese, but don’t use them, they’re still stored in your memory.

⚠️ Attention: B MIUI Keyboard: Some languages (e.g. Indian dialects) are set in 100 packets+ MB. They can only be removed through a full reset of the keyboard.

Topics, stickers and GIF

Gboard allows you to install themes from the Play Market and MIUI Keyboard: Download stickers and animated background images. /data/data/com.matching/files and can weigh up 300 MB.

Logs and debugging information

If the keyboard ever crashed or updated with an error, it could create memory dumps (logs for diagnostics), which are rarely deleted automatically.

🛠️ How to find: Use a file manager (such as Mi File Manager) and check the folder /Android/data/com.google.android.inputmethod.latin/ (for Gboard) for files with the.log or.dump extension.

Mistakes in work MIUI

Sometimes firmware MIUI It can show that the keyboard is 3 GB, for example, when it is actually 300 MB. It is a bug that is fixed by restarting or updating the system.

💡

If after cleaning the cache and data, the keyboard size has not changed, the problem is in the system memory account, not in the real volume of files.

3. How to safely reduce the occupied space

Before you start cleaning, back up important keyboard data (if it supports exporting). → Dictionary → Exporting user words.

Clearing cache and unnecessary data

The easiest way is:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find your keyboard (MIUI Keyboard or Gboard).
3. Slip the vault. → Clear the cache.
4. If necessary, click Clear Data (but this will reset all settings!).

⚠️ Note: After clearing the Data, the keyboard may temporarily work slower – it will have to “learn” your writing style again.

3.2 Removal of unnecessary languages

On Gboard:

1. Open any input field, swipe down the keyboard toolbar and tap. ⚙️.
2. Go to the languages → Language removal.
3. Take the boxes off the unnecessary layouts.

V MIUI Keyboard:

1. Press the comma (,) on the keyboard → Settings.
2. Select Languages and Entering → Language management.
3. Remove unused languages (button) 🗑️).

3.3. Disconnect synchronization

If you don’t need a history of input on all devices:

• In Gboard: Settings → Dictionary → Synchronization of the dictionary → turn off.
• V MIUI Keyboard: Settings → Additionally. → Synchronization of data → turn off.

🔹 Predictions will become less accurate, but the keyboard will stop accumulating gigabytes of data.

Removal of themes and stickers

On Gboard:

1. Open the keyboard settings → Topics.
2. Tapping on the current topic → Remove (if downloadable).
3. For stickers: Settings → Stickers. → Sticker management → remove unnecessary packs.

V MIUI Keyboard themes are removed through Settings → Registration → My subjects.

Resetting the keyboard to factory settings

Last resort, if nothing has helped:

1. Go to Settings. → Annexes → [keyboard] → Warehouse.
2. Click Clear Data and Clear Cache.
3. Reboot the phone.

⚠️ Warning: This will remove all the learned words, history and settings. It will take 1-2 weeks for the keyboard to re-adjust to you.

Backup of user words (if possible)

Clear the cache

Remove unnecessary languages

Turn off sync.

Remove downloaded themes and stickers

Reboot the phone-->

4. Alternative keyboards with less weight

If even after cleaning the keyboard takes up too much space, consider alternatives. Here are 3 easy options for Xiaomi:

💡 Tip: Before installing an alternative keyboard, turn off the standard one in the settings (Settings) → System system → Language and input → Virtual keyboard so that it does not work in the background.

5. Why is the place occupied again after cleaning?

Many users complain, "Cache cleared, and after a week the keyboard weighs 500 MB again!"

• 🔄 Cache is recovered with each use (for example, downloading new emojis or fonts).
• 📈 The dictionary learns again – the keyboard remembers your words and phrases.
• 🔄 Auto-update languages: some keyboards download new dictionaries in the background.

📌 How to slow down growth:

1. Turn off automatic language updates in keyboard settings.
2. Limit Internet access for the keyboard (Settings) → Annexes → [keyboard] → Mobile data and Wi-Fi).
3. Clean the cache regularly (once a month).

💡

If you often write in two languages but don’t want the keyboard to save history for both, use two different keyboards (like Gboard for English and Gboard for English). MIUI Keyboard for Russian) and turn off sync in both.

6. Hidden settings MIUI keyboard optimisation

Xiaomi hides some options that help control memory consumption, here's how to find them:

Disconnection of statistics collection

keyboard MIUI It can send anonymous input data to Xiaomi to disable:

1. Hold the comma on the comma. MIUI Keyboard → Settings.
2. Go to the Supplementary → Usage statistics.
3. Turn off the option to Send Usage Data.

Limitation of input history

V MIUI 12/13/14 There is a hidden setting that limits the size of the dictionary:

1. Activate Developer Mode (Settings) → The phone. → Version. MIUI → tap 7 times).
2. Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
3. Find Limit the size of the keyboard dictionary and set a value of 50MB.

⚠️ Warning: This option is not available on all devices. If it is not available, use it. ADB-team:

adb shell settings put global keyboard_dict_limit 52428800

(where 52428800 is 50 MB in bytes).

Transfer of keyboard data to SD-map

If Xiaomi supports adoptable storage (SD-card as internal memory, you can transfer some of the keyboard data there:

1. Put it in. SD-Map and format it as an internal storage.
2. Go to Settings. → Annexes → [keyboard] → Warehouse → Change.
3. Choose. SD-Card (if the option is active).

❗ Important: Not all keyboards support portability. Gboard usually allows you to do this. MIUI Keyboard - No.

7.The Xiaomi Keyboard Myths: What Not to Do

There are a lot of tips on the Internet for optimizing keyboards that are actually harmful or useless.

7.1. "Remove the keyboard and re-install"

🚫 Why it's bad: System keyboards (MIUI Keyboard can't be completely deleted without root rights. And reinstalling Gboard doesn't clean up user data -- it's stored in the cloud.

7.2. "Disable all permissions for the keyboard"

❌ Consequences: Without access to the microphone, voice input will not work, without access to storage - you can not download topics, without the Internet - dictionaries will not be updated.

7.3. "Use Clean Master for Cleaning"

⚠️ Hazard: Cleaners often delete important keyboard files, causing it to lag or drop.

7.4. "The keyboard is spying on you - delete it!"

🔍 Reality: Yes, keyboards collect input data, but:

• V MIUI Keyboard is disabled (see Section 6.1).
• Gboard encrypts your input history and does not share it with third parties (according to Google).
• Alternative keyboards (such as Simple Keyboard) do not collect data at all.

💡 Conclusion: If you are concerned about privacy, use open source keyboards (AnySoftKeyboard, FlorisBoard).

8. Frequent Questions (FAQ)