Where Xiaomi Stores Notes: The Path to the Android folder and How to Access

Have you ever lost important notes on a Xiaomi smartphone after resetting your settings or updating your firmware? Or just want to back up your texts but don't know where to look for them in the file system? The problem is that the manufacturer doesn't advertise the location of these files -- they're hidden in system directories that require special rights or knowledge of exact paths.

In this article, we’ll look at all possible storage locations on Xiaomi devices (including MIUI 12-15 and HyperOS models), and explain how to find them – both through standard Android tools, and with ADB or root file manager.

How to store notes on Xiaomi: a general scheme

Xiaomi’s Notes app uses a combined storage system:

• 📁 Local files – stored in a secure folder on the internal drive (available only through root or ADB).
• ☁️ Mi Account Cloud – synced with Xiaomi servers (requires authorization).
• 🔄 Application cache – temporary files that may contain fragments of notes (cleared when you delete application data).

It's important to understand that the path to the folder depends on the version of MIUI/HyperOS and the smartphone model. For example, on older devices (before MIUI 11), notes could be stored in plain form, and starting with MIUI 12 - only in encrypted format.

The main way to Xiaomi notes: where to look for files

On most Xiaomi devices (including Redmi, POCO, and Black Shark), notes are stored along the following path:

/data/data/com.miui.notes/files/notes/

In this folder you will find:

• 📄.json files contain note text, time stamps and formatting.
• 🖼️ attachments folder - attachments are stored here (photos, audio, screenshots).
• 🔐 Note.db – a meta-information database (starting with the MIUI 14).

⚠️ Attention: Folder /data/data/ available only through root or through ADB Trying to open it through a standard conductor will lead to the error "No access».

If you don’t have root, an alternative way to do this is to back up your Mi Account or use specialized utilities like MiXplorer (with Root Explorer enabled), and more on that in the next section.

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On HyperOS (2026+), the path may be different. Try also searching for notes in /data/user/0/com.miui.notes/ or via adb shell ls /data/data/com.miui.notes/

How to Access a Notes Folder Without Root

If you don’t have superuser rights, there are a few legal ways to extract notes:

Method 1: Through ADB (without root)

Connect your smartphone to your PC, enable debugging over USB (Settings → About Phone → MIUI Version → 7 times press to unlock Developer Mode, then Settings → Additional → For Developers → Debugging over USB) and execute commands:

adb backup -f notes.ab com.miui.notes


adb pull /sdcard/notes.ab

This will back up the Notes app in the notes.ab file. To extract data, use utilities like Android Backup Extractor.

Method 2: Mi Account (Sync)

If you are synchronizing with Mi Account:

1. Open Settings → Xiaomi Account → Mi Cloud → Notes
2. Make sure the switch is active.
3. Go to i.mi.com → “Notes” – there will be all synchronized records.

⚠️ Note: If you delete notes on your phone, they will automatically be deleted from the cloud after 30 days. To recover, use the Recycle Bin feature in the web version of Mi Cloud.

Method 3: Through Third Party File Managers

Some conductors (such as Solid Explorer or FX File Explorer) can request access to system folders via the Storage Access Framework (SAF).

1. Open the file manager.
2. Go to internal memory → Android → data.
3. Find the com.miui.notes folder (permissions may be required).

USB debugging enabled

Installed ADB drivers on PC

Backup of notes in Mi Cloud

Checked free space on the phone (minimum 100 MB)

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Differences in note storage on different versions of MIUI

The folder structure and the note file format changed with the release of new versions of the shell.

Starting with MIUI 14, Xiaomi actively encrypts local copies of notes, so it becomes almost impossible to extract them without root or backup. If it is critical to save data, use cloud synchronization or regularly export notes manually (the “Export” function in the app menu).

What to do if the notes are missing after resetting or firmware

A common problem with Xiaomi users is the disappearance of notes after:

• 🔄 Reset to factory settings (without backup).
• 📱 Firmware updates (especially with MIUI HyperOS).
• 🗑️ Application data cleansing ("Settings") → Annexes → Notes → Warehouse → Clear the data»).

They can be restored in the following ways:

1.Recovery from Mi Cloud

If synchronization has been activated:

1. Sign in to the same Mi Account.
2. Open the Notes app – the data must be downloaded automatically.
3. If not, check Settings → Xiaomi Account → Mi Cloud → Notes → Sync.

2.Recovery from local backup

If you have backed up through ADB or Mi PC Suite:

1. Connect the phone to the PC.
2. Restore the backup with the command: adb restore notes.ab
3. Reset the device.

⚠️ Note: If you reset your phone to factory settings without the Mi Account waiver, you can only restore notes after re-associating the same account. Otherwise, the data will remain in the cloud, but not downloaded to the device.

3. Use of utilities for data recovery

Programs like Dr.Fone or EaseUS MobiSaver can scan internal memory for deleted files, but their effectiveness depends on:

• 🕒 The time after the removal (the earlier the better).
• 📱 Phone models (on Xiaomi with) UFS 3.1 odds are lower because TRIM-optimization).
• 🔄 Availability of data overwriting (installation of new applications, taking photos, etc.).

How to Transfer Notes from One Xiaomi to Another

If you’ve changed your smartphone and want to move notes, there are three reliable ways to do this:

Method 1: Mi Cloud (recommended)

The simplest method is:

1. On an old phone: Settings → Xiaomi Account → Mi Cloud → Notes → Sync.
2. On a new phone: log in to the same account and wait for sync.

Method 2: Exporting to a file

In the appendix “Notes”:

1. Open the note. → ⋮ → Exports.
2. Select the format (.txt or.html).
3. Transfer the file to a new phone and import it through the same menu.

⚠️ Note: Export/import only works for individual notes, not the entire base. ADB.

Method 3: Through ADB (for Advanced)

If you need to transfer all notes at once, including attachments:

1. On the old phone, do: adb backup -f notes_backup.ab com.miui.notes
2. Copy the file. notes_backup.ab new phone.
3. Restore: adb restore notes_backup.ab

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When migrating through ADB, consider the MIUI version: if a new phone has a fresher firmware, the backup may not recover due to changes in the database structure.

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

When working with notes on Xiaomi, users often face typical problems:

• 🔄 Notes are not synchronized with Mi Cloud → Check if sync is enabled in your account settings and if you have internet access.
• 📱 The Notes app is flying out → Clear the cache (Settings) → Annexes → Notes → Warehouse → Clear the cache).
• 🔐 You can't open the file. /data/data/ → Use it. ADB Or you get rooted.
• 🗑️ Deleted notes are not restored → Check the Recycle Bin in the web version of Mi Cloud (stores deleted records for 30 days).

Another common mistake is losing notes after the MIUI update, which is because you change the storage format to avoid the problem:

1. Before upgrading, backup via Mi Cloud or ADB.
2. Do not clean the Notes app data after the update.
3. If the notes are missing, try to roll back to the previous firmware version (via Fastboot).

FAQ: Answers to popular questions