Xiaomi’s internal memory is crammed to the end: 12 ways to free up space

Why does Xiaomi’s memory end so quickly?

You open a gallery to take a photo, but the phone makes an error: "Not enough memory." Or you try to install an update, and the system says, "Free up 1.5 GB to download." Familiar? Internal memory on Xiaomi smartphones (especially the budget series Redmi and POCO) often becomes a headache for users. Even if you do not download movies and install dozens of games, the place mysteriously "evaporates." What is the matter?

The reason lies in three factors:

• 📱 MIUI Xiaomi systems aggressively save temporary files to speed up work, but rarely clean them automatically.
• 🗑️ App garbage: messengers, social networks and games leave behind gigabytes of “tails” (cache, logs, minidumps).
• 🔄 Duplicates and hidden files: MIUI backups photos, recordings and even SMS without your knowledge.

For example, a Redmi Note 11 with 64GB of storage after a year of use can show that 50+GB is occupied, even though you only installed 10-15 apps. Where did the rest go? Let's get this straight.

Method 1: Cleaning cache and debris through built-in MIUI tools

The first thing to do is use standard MIUI utilities. They are free, do not require root rights and delete up to 3-5 GB of unnecessary data in one click.

Open the Security app (the shield icon) and go to Cleanup, where the system automatically scans:

• 🧹 Application cache (temporary files that can be deleted without consequences).
• 📁 Unnecessary APK (Remnants of Remote Programs).
• 🗃️ Empty folders and duplicate files.

Click Clean and you'll see how much space has been vacated in 10-20 seconds. Importantly, don't confuse Clean with Deep Clean, which can delete the app authorization data!

⚠️ Note: If your memory is refilled in a day or two, check your apps for background activity. Some programs (like TikTok or Facebook) can cache data even when you’re not using it.

Method 2: Manually Delete Heavy Files

Built-in cleaning doesn't always work with large files that take up the lion's share of memory, so you can find and delete them.

1. Open Files (application from Xiaomi with folder icon).
2. Go to the Category section → Large files.
3. Sort by size and remove the unnecessary: old videos, unused archives, heavy APKs.

Notice the folders:

• 📸 DCIM/Camera — There may be duplicate photos here (MIUI Sometimes saves pictures in.jpg and.heic).
• 🎵 Music and Downloads – downloaded tracks and files you haven’t opened in a long time.
• 🤖 Android/data — This is where game data is stored (e.g., Genshin Impact cache can weigh in). 10+ GB!).

⚠️ Note: Do not delete the entire Android folder, this will cause app failure. Only delete the contents of the subfolders (for example, delete the contents of the folders, Android/data/com.tencent.ig for PUBG Mobile).

Method 3: Transfer data to a memory card or to the cloud

If you have a microSD slot on your phone, transfer it to:

• 📷 Photo and video (via Gallery) → Select → Move over).
• 🎶 Music and podcasts (in the Music app, select Settings) → Storage folder).
• 📄 Documents (use Files) → Categories → Documents).

For models without microSD support (for example, Xiaomi 13 or POCO F5), the cloud is suitable:

• 🌥️ Mi Cloud (5GB free, integrated into the MIUI).
• 📦 Google Photos (unlimited storage of compressed photos).
• ☁️ Yandex Disk or Mega (10-50 GB free).

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Before transferring to the memory card, format it to exFAT via your phone – this will allow you to write files more than 4 GB.

How do you migrate applications to SD? Unfortunately, newer versions of MIUI (13+) have this feature disabled by default, but you can use a workaround:

1. Install App Mgr III from Google Play.
2. Select the application → Move to SD.
3. Confirm the action (developer rights will be required).

Method 4: Clearing the cache of individual applications

Some programs eat up memory particularly actively, such as:

• 📱 WhatsApp caches all media files from chat rooms.
• 🎮 Free Fire or Call of Duty Mobile – Download updates in the background.
• 📺 TikTok – saves video for offline viewing.

To clear the cache of a particular application:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Select a program (such as Instagram).
3. Press Warehouse. → Clear the cache.

WhatsApp and Telegram are also useful for:

• Open chat settings → Storage → Clear media files.
• Disable Autoload Media in Mobile Data.

Method 5: Removing System Garbage Through ADB (For Advanced)

If standard methods didn’t work and the memory is still full, try removing the system cache via ADB (Android Debug Bridge).This requires connecting the phone to a PC, but allows you to clear up to 1-2 GB of hidden files.

Instructions:

1. Download Platform Tools from Google.
2. Turn on the phone Debugging over USB (Settings → About Phone → MIUI Version → 7 times click on version → return to Additional → For developers).
3. Connect the phone to your PC and type in the command line: adb shell pm trim-caches -d 1000000000 This command clears the cache of all applications, including system ones.

To remove the dalvik cache (can release another 500 MB-1 GB) do:

adb shell su -c "rm -r /data/dalvik-cache/*"

Note: Root rights are required for this team.

⚠️ Attention: Unsuccessful use ADB If you're not sure what you're doing, you can skip this.

Method 6: Reset to factory settings (last resort)

If memory is full of files that are not deleted (for example, after an incorrect MIUI update or a virus attack), only hard reset will help.

• 🔄 Make a backup copy through Settings → Additionally. → Backup.
• ☁️ Synchronize your contacts with Google Account.
• 📁 Save important files to your PC or cloud.

For discharge:

1. Go to Settings → About the phone → Reset settings.
2. Choose to erase all data.
3. Confirm the action (you will need to enter a password).

Once reset, the phone will return to a clean state, like after buying, which is guaranteed to free up all memory, but will take time to adjust.

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Resetting to factory settings is the only way to remove undeleteable system files that take up space after MIUI failures.

Method 7: Optimize MIUI for memory savings

MIUI offers several built-in features that help you automatically control your memory:

• 🔄 Autoclean: Enable in Settings → Battery and productivity → Cleaning up memory.
• 📦 Light Mode: Limits Background Application Activity (Settings) → Special opportunities → Light mode).
• 🚫 Cache Limitation: C Settings → Warehouse → Storage settings set a cache limit.

It is also useful to disable:

• 📹 Autosaving media in messengers.
• 🎵 Caching music in Spotify or Yandex Music.
• 🗺️ Offline maps in Google Maps or Yandex Maps.

These measures will not release memory instantly, but will prevent it from filling up quickly in the future.

What to do if your memory is running out anyway?

If you’ve tried all the ways but Xiaomi’s internal storage is still clogged, the following reasons are possible:

• 🛠️ Damaged file system (helps flashing through Fastboot).
• 🦠 Virus or malware (scan your phone through Malwarebytes).
• 📉 Memory wear (on old phones, the flash drive loses capacity).

In such cases:

1. Check the phone for viruses.
2. Update MIUI to the latest version.
3. If the problem remains, contact the Xiaomi service center.

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If the memory is not properly stored after cleaning (for example, 32 GB instead of 64 GB), it may be a hardware malfunction.

FAQ: Frequent questions about Xiaomi memory