How to transfer contacts from one Xiaomi to another: all ways with photos

The transition to a new Xiaomi smartphone is always exciting, especially when it comes to keeping important data safe. Contacts accumulated over the years can disappear in an instant if you do not approach the transfer process responsibly. Fortunately, the MIUI ecosystem offers several reliable ways to synchronize the phone book between devices, from embedded features to cloud services.

In this article, we will discuss 5 Proven methods that work on all Xiaomi models (from Redmi Note) 7 Xiaomi 14 Ultra, including devices with MIUI 12-14 You will learn how to transfer contacts through your Xiaomi, Google, Bluetooth account, SIM-map and even file VCF. How to avoid common mistakes that can cause data to be lost.

1. Transfer contacts through your Xiaomi account (the fastest way)

If both of your smartphones are running MIUI or HyperOS, this method will take no more than 2-3 minutes. The main condition is that you must have the same Mi Account on both devices. Sync is automatic, but sometimes you need to manually set up.

Here's how to do it:

• 📱 On your old smartphone, open Settings → Xiaomi account → Mi Cloud and make sure the switch opposite Contact is active (green.
• 🔄 Wait for the process to be completed (the top panel will display a notification "Synchronization completed").
• 🆕 On your new smartphone, log in to the same Xiaomi account and enable contact synchronization in Mi Cloud.
• ⏳ Wait. 1-2 Minutes – Contacts will appear automatically in the phone book.

Make sure both phones have the same MIUI/HyperOS version

Check the stability of the Internet connection (Wi-Fi or 4G/5G)

Free up space in Mi Cloud (if the 5GB limit is exhausted)

Sign out and re-enter your account on your new phone (unless contacts appear)-->

⚠️ Note: If you have used a dual account (e.g. Google) + Xiaomi) on an old phone, contacts may have split. Before transferring, check whether they are stored in Mi Cloud or Google Contacts. To do this, open the Contacts app, click on the three dots in the upper right corner and select Contact Management.

2. synchronization through Google Contacts (universal method)

If you use Google services (Gmail, YouTube, Play Market), your contacts are likely already saved in the cloud, a method that is suitable not only for Xiaomi, but for any Android device, including Samsung, Huawei or Realme.

Instructions:

• 🔍 On your old phone, open Settings. → Accounts. → Google and make sure that your contacts sync is enabled.
• 📤 If contacts are not synced automatically, click Sync Now.
• 📱 On the new Xiaomi, add the same Google account to Settings → Accounts.
• 🔄 Enable contact synchronization and wait for the process to be completed.

💡 Useful tip: To check which contacts are saved in Google, open your browser on your PC or phone and go to contacts.google.com. Here you can edit, delete or export contacts in.vcf format.

Xiaomi account (Mi Cloud)

Google Contacts

Bluetooth or SIM-map

VCF/Excel file

I don't sync, I move it manually.-->

⚠️ Note: If the old phone only saved the contacts SIM-Map or device memory, they will not be automatically accessed by Google Contacts, in which case export them to.vcf (see section 5) or transfer them to Google Contacts. SIM-map (section 4).

3. Contacts over Bluetooth (without the Internet)

This method is useful if you do not have access to Wi-Fi or mobile Internet, as well as for older Xiaomi models (for example, Redmi 4X or Mi A1), where cloud sync is unstable.

Step-by-step:

1. 📱 On your old phone, open the Contacts app.
2. 🔍 Click on the three dots in the top right corner and select Import/Export. → Send contacts.
3. 📤 Select Bluetooth and confirm the shipment.
4. 📱 On your new phone, turn Bluetooth on in the notification panel and confirm the file acceptance.
5. 📥 After transfer, open the received.vcf file and save the contacts to the phone book.

⚠️ Note: When transmitting a large number of contacts (500+) Bluetooth can interrupt the connection, in which case, break the phone book into pieces. 100-200 You can send them separately, and make sure that the new phone has enough memory. 1000 The contact may weigh up to 5 MB.

4. Transfer of contacts through SIM-map (for basic models)

The good old ones. SIM-Maps are still a relevant way to transfer contacts, especially when it comes to budget models Xiaomi (for example, Redmi). 9A or POCO C31). The main advantage is that you don't need the Internet. SIM The card will place a limited number of contacts (usually up to 250) and profile photos will not be saved.

How to move:

• 📱 On your old phone, open your contacts. → Settings (three points) → Imports/Exports → Exports to SIM-map.
• 📋 Select the contacts you want to copy (or click Select All).
• 🔄 Wait until the export is completed (may take a few minutes) 1-2 minute).
• 📲 Replace it. SIM-card.
• 📥 In Contacts of the new device select Import with SIM-map.

🔍 On some Xiaomi models (for example, Mi 11 or Redmi Note 10 Pro) SIM-The card may not appear in the list of import/export devices:

1. Go to Settings. → SIM-maps and mobile networks.
2. Make sure that SIM-The card is recognized by the system (if not, restart the phone).
3. Try using a nano-SIM adapter if the card isn’t tightly inserted.

💡

If contacts are SIM-the card is duplicated at import, before transfer clear SIM For that, it's on the Contact Menu. → Import/Export select Remove from SIM-Cards (but be careful – recovery will be impossible!).

5. Export and import contacts via VCF file (for backup)

The.vcf (vCard) format is the universal standard for storing contacts that all modern smartphones support, a method suitable if you want to back up before resetting your phone or transfer contacts to a device of another brand (for example, from Xiaomi to iPhone).

Instructions:

1. 📱 On your old phone, open your contacts. → Settings → Imports/Exports → Export to file.
2. 📄 Select a storage location (internal memory or storage). SD-map) and confirm export.
3. 📎 A file with the.vcf extension will appear in the Download folder or MIUI/backup.
4. 📤 Transfer the file to your new phone via Bluetooth, email or cloud storage (Google Drive, Mi Cloud).
5. 📥 On the new phone, open the received file and confirm the import of contacts.

Critical information: If you plan to reset your old phone to factory settings, be sure to check the integrity of the VCF file before cleaning. Open it on your PC using Outlook or the online VCF Viewer service.

💡

The VCF file is the only way to transfer your contacts from Xiaomi to iPhone without loss. After export, send the file to email, open it on your iPhone and save the contacts to iCloud.

6. Frequent mistakes and how to avoid them

Even with the seemingly easy transfer of contacts, users often face problems such as duplicate records, loss of data or inability to synchronize.

Problem 1: Contacts are not synced through the Mi Cloud.

• 🔌 Check your internet connection (synchronization only works via Wi-Fi or mobile data).
• 🔄 Update the Mi Cloud app on Google Play.
• 📱 Log out of your Xiaomi account and log in again.
• 📵 If nothing helps, reset your Mi Cloud settings in Settings. → Annexes → Application management → Mi Cloud → Warehouse → Clear the data.

Problem 2: After the transfer, photos of contacts were lost.

⚠️ Note: Profile photos are stored separately from the main contact data. SIM-To save avatars, use: Google Contact Sync (photos are saved in the cloud); export to.vcf followed by import (not all models support photo transfer); manually save photos through a screenshot and assign them to contacts on a new phone.

Problem 3: Duplicate contacts after importation.

This happens if the new phone already has some contacts (like WhatsApp or Telegram) and you add them again.

• 🧹 Before importing, delete all contacts on your new phone (or back up).
• 🔍 Use the Connect Contacts function in the Contacts app (three points) → Contact management → Unite).
• 📊 Google Contacts on PC has a tool to find duplicates (Actions) → Find and combine duplicates).

FAQ: Answers to popular questions