How to transfer applications to the memory card in Xiaomi smartphones: full instructions

Xiaomi smartphones are getting more powerful every year, but the amount of internal memory often remains a bottleneck — especially in low-end models of Redmi or POCO. Even 64-128 GB are quickly clogged with applications, cache and media. The microSD card seems to be the obvious solution, but porting applications to it to MIUI does not work like in “pure” Android. In this article, we will examine all the nuances from official methods to workarounds for persistent applications that refuse to move.

It’s important to understand that not all apps can be ported, and manufacturers (including Xiaomi) are limiting this feature because of the risks of performance decline — SD-cards slower than internal memory UFS/eMMC. But for many users, even partial transfers free up critical gigabytes. MIUI 14/15 Identify which models (e.g. Redmi Note) 12 or POCO X5 Pros support function better than others.

Why Xiaomi is limiting the portability of applications SD-map

Unlike older versions of Android (up to 6.0), where porting apps to a memory card was almost unlimited, modern Xiaomi based on MIUI blocks this ability for most programs.

• 🔹 Productivity: SD-cards (even class) A2) They run 2-5 times slower than the internal memory, which leads to lags when you run the migrated applications.
• 🔹 Security: Memory card applications are easier to steal or replace (risk for banking programs, instant messengers).
• 🔹 Fragmentation: Android optimized to work with internal memory. SD impairs multitasking.
• 🔹 Google Policy: Starting in 2019, Google recommends manufacturers to abandon the Adoptable Storage feature SD part of the internal memory).

However, Xiaomi leaves portability for a limited list of apps — usually games, utilities or programs with moveToSD support in the manifesto. For example, Facebook Lite or Spotify often port without problems, but WhatsApp or Google Maps — not.

⚠️ Note: Transferring system applications (such as Mi Browser or Security) may cause a malfunction MIUI. Some users after such manipulations faced with the “eternal” loading of the smartphone.

Official method: transfer via MIUI settings

If your app supports portability, you can do it through the standard menu. MIUI 14/15:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Choose the app you want (like Genshin Impact or Netflix).
3. Slip on Warehouse.
4. If the option is available, a button will appear to Move to SD-Map (or Modify in new versions).
5. Confirm the action and wait until the process is complete (may take up to 5 minutes for major games).

How do you check if the app supports portability? In the same menu, the Storage must have a transfer button active, and if it's not there or it's shaded, the app can't be officially moved.

Buy it. SD-class A2 (SanDisk Extreme or Samsung EVO Plus)

Format the map in FAT32/exFAT via smartphone (Settings) → Warehouse → SD-map → Format)

Create a backup of the data on the card (transfer will delete all files!)

Close the application before transfer (otherwise the process will end in an error)-->

Alternative methods: circumventing MIUI restrictions

If the official way doesn't work, you can try workarounds, which require more effort, but sometimes even help you to migrate intolerable applications.

1.Use of ADB (for advanced users)

The method works through Android Debug Bridge and allows you to force the application to be moved even if MIUI blocks it in the interface.

1. Turn on Developer Mode (7 times tap the MIUI version in Settings → About Phone).
2. Activate Debugging by USB in Settings → Additional → For developers.
3. Connect your smartphone to your PC and open the command line (Windows) or terminal (Mac/Linux).
4. Enter the command to check the connection: Adb devices should appear the name of your device.
5. Find out the batch name of the application (for example, through the App Inspector from the Play Market).
6. Run the port command: adb shell pm set-install-location 2 Then: adb shell pm move-package com.example.app (replace com.example.app with the real name of the package).

Warning: Some applications may not work smoothly after being forced to port or even stop running.

2.Cloning applications (e.g. App Cloner)

If transfer is not possible, you can create a “clone” of the application, which will be stored on the Internet. SD-The clone is not synchronized with the original and may not receive notifications.

• 📱 Install App Cloner from Play Market.
• 🔄 Select a cloning app (e.g. Instagram).
• 💾 In the clone settings, indicate the path to SD-map.
• 📲 Run a clone instead of the original app.

Which applications cannot be transferred to SD-map

Even with ADB or root rights, some applications are not portable to external memory, and here's a blacklist:

• 🏦 Banking applications: SberBank, Tinkoff, VTB. They block work when a transfer is detected due to security requirements.
• 💬 Messengers: WhatsApp, Telegram, Viber. Transfer leads to the loss of messages and media files.
• 📍 Maps and navigation: Google Maps, Yandex.Maps, 2GIS. Requires fast memory to load maps.
• 🎮 Online Authorization Games: PUBG Mobile, Free Fire, Call of Duty.Movement can lead to account ban.
• 🔒 System utilities: Mi Security, Cleaner, Theme Manager. MIUI.

Transfer of Google Play Services or Mi Account to the SD-The card will render the smartphone completely inoperable, and the only way to restore the system is to reset to factory settings.

⚠️ Note: If you use Xiaomi with an unlocked bootloader and custom firmware (e.g., Pixel Experience), porting apps to the site SD Some custom builds support Adoptable Storage, but this requires a full formatting of the memory card as internal storage (data on it will be deleted!).

How to Free Up Space Without Porting Applications

If transfer is not possible or does not help, try alternative ways to free up memory:

• 🧹 Cache Cleanup: Go to Settings → Warehouse → Cleaning and removing unnecessary files.
• 🗑️ Removing duplicates: Use Files by Google or Mi File Manager to find repetitive photos/videos.
• ☁️ Cloud Storage: Move Photos and Videos to Google Photos or Mi Cloud (gives 5GB for free).
• 🎵 Streaming instead of downloading: In Spotify, YouTube Music or Yandex Music, disable saving offline tracks.
• 📱 Lite versions of apps: Replace heavy programs with lightweight ones (for example, Facebook Lite instead of Facebook).

For games with large data files (such as Genshin Impact or Call of Duty Mobile), you can transfer only cache to the computer. SD-map:

1. Open the game settings.
2. Find the Warehouse or Data Management section.
3. Select the option to Transfer data to SD-card (if available).

💡

If you support Xiaomi OTG, You can connect the external SSD Or a flash drive through an adapter, and the read/write speed will be faster than the speed of the adapter. SD-cards, and the volume - up to 1 TB. Suitable for storing media files and backup copies.

Frequent mistakes and their solutions

When transferring applications to SD-Xiaomi users often encounter errors. Let's analyze the most common:

If after the transfer the application began to slow down, try:

1. Clean its cache in Settings → Apps → Storage.
2. Reboot the smartphone.
3. Transfer the application back to internal memory.

💡

The best results of the application transfer shows on smartphones with support UFS 2.2/3.1 (for example, Xiaomi 13T or POCO F5). On budget models with eMMC (e.g. Redmi) 10A) the difference in speed between internal memory and SD-map will be too prominent.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions