How to change a photo of a contact on Xiaomi: 4 proven ways + tips for optimization

Want to personalize your Xiaomi contacts by adding unique photos to friends, colleagues or family? This not only makes the phonebook visually appealing, but also makes it easier to find the right subscriber. However, many users face difficulties: somewhere the “Change Photo” button is hidden in the depths of the menu, and somewhere the system refuses to save new images at all. In this article, we will analyze all the current ways to change the contact avatar on Xiaomi smartphones (including models on MIUI 14/15 and HyperOS), and also reveal nuances that are not written in the standard instructions.

You'll learn how to edit photos directly in the Contacts app, sync changes through Google Account, use third-party services for mass editing, and even how to recover lost avatars. And at the end of this article, you'll find answers to frequent questions and life hacks that will save you time.

If you’ve never changed your contacts photos on Xiaomi, start with the first one — it’s the easiest and works on 90% of devices — and the Google sync and display issues section will be helpful to power users, where we’ll sort out typical system bugs.

Method 1: Change your photo through the standard Contacts app

The most obvious and quick method is editing directly in the native Contacts app (or Contacts on firmware with English interface) and is suitable for all Xiaomi smartphones, including Redmi, POCO and Black Shark, regardless of the version of MIUI or HyperOS.

Here's the step-by-step instruction:

1. Open the Contacts app (a icon with a person’s silhouette on a blue background).
2. Find the contact you want in the list or use the search bar at the top.
3. Tap the contact name to open his card.
4. Slip on the current photo (or on the camera icon if there is no avatar).
5. In the menu that appears, select: 📷 Take a photo to capture a new image through the camera; 🖼️ Select from the gallery to upload the finished photo; ❌ Delete the photo to remove the current avatar.

Ready.

Save.

⚠️

Note: If the photo editing button is inactive (grey), check if the contact is saved. SIM-Xiaomi does not allow you to change avatars for contacts stored on the map SIM. Move this contact to your phone memory or Google Account (more on this in the next section).

2. Method 2: Editing through Google Contacts (synchronization)

If you use Google Account to sync your contacts, it’s easier to change your photos through the web version of Google Contacts.

1. Changes will be applied immediately to all devices where synchronization is enabled (including tablets and computers).
2. You can upload high-resolution photos (up to 720×720 pixels), whereas the standard Xiaomi app sometimes compresses images.

Instructions for editing through Google Contacts:

1. Open your browser on your computer or phone and go to contacts.google.com.
2. Sign in with the same account that is linked to your Xiaomi.
3. Find the contact you need in the list and click on it.
4. Click on the camera icon in the mug (or the current photo of the contact).
5. Select Upload a photo and specify the file on your device.
6. Cut the image in a circle (if necessary) and save the changes.

⚠️

Attention: If the photo didn't appear on your phone after editing, check the sync settings: Go to Settings → Accounts → Google → [your email] → Account Sync. Make sure the slider opposite Contact is enabled. Click More → Sync Now. Sometimes sync is delayed up to 10-15 minutes.

💡

If you edit contacts frequently, add Google Contacts to your browser bookmarks or to your smartphone’s home screen, which will save you time, especially if you have hundreds of subscribers.

Method 3: Using the Truecaller app for mass editing

If you have to change photos for dozens of contacts, standard methods will seem tedious, and Truecaller’s app will help, not only identifying spammer numbers, but also allowing you to massively edit contact avatars using data from social networks (VK, Facebook, Instagram), which is especially useful if you have many friends with public profiles.

How to change the photo with Truecaller:

1. Download and install Truecaller from Google Play.
2. Register (phone number required) and allow access to contacts.
3. Open the Contacts tab in the lower menu.
4. Find the right contact and tap on it.
5. If Truecaller found a subscriber profile on social networks, you will see the Update photo button – click it.
6. Select a source (such as Instagram or VK) and confirm the update.

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Warning: Truecaller collects your contacts to form a number database. If this is a concern, use the app only for one-time editing, then uninstall it (be sure to revoke access to contacts in your Android settings).

Method 4: Manual editing through file manager (for advanced)

This method is suitable for those who like to "dig" into system files or encounter an error when a photo of the contact is not saved through standard methods.

Contact avatars in MIUI are stored in the folder:

/data/data/com.android.providers.contacts/databases/contacts2.db

However, it is not possible to edit the database directly, and you will need to:

1. Install a file manager with access to root folders (e.g. Solid Explorer or FX File Explorer).
2. Get root rights (not to be rooted)-root-This method will not work with devices).
3. Download SQL-Editor (e.g. SQLite Editor) to change entries in the database.

Step-by-step:

1. Back up the contacts2.db file (copy it to a safe location).
2. Open the file in SQLite Editor and find the table raw_contacts.
3. Find the line with the right contact (orientate by column) display_name).
4. In the column photo_uri Please indicate the path to a new photo (for example, /storage/emulated/0/DCIM/Camera/photo.jpg).
5. Save the changes and restart the phone.

⚠️

Note: This method is risky - if the error is SQL-If you're in a query, you lose all your contacts. Use it only if the other ways didn't work and you're confident in your actions. Alternatively, export the contacts to a.vcf file, edit it on your computer (e.g., via Excel), and then import it back.

Typical problems and their solutions

Even after a successful photo change, Xiaomi users sometimes encounter bugs, and here are the most common problems and ways to fix them:

Problem 1: Contact photos are not displayed in calls or SMS.

🔹 Decision:

• 🔄 Restart your phone – sometimes the phone app cache is reset only after a reboot.
• 📱 Check the display settings: Settings → Annexes → Phone. → Permits (contacts and storage must be included).
• 🗑️ Clear the cache of the Contacts and Phone apps in Settings → Annexes → [select] → Warehouse → Clear the cache.

Problem 2: The photo persists, but becomes blurry.

🔹 Decision:

• 🖼️ Use the original photo with a resolution of at least 500×500 pixel. MIUI Automatically compresses images to 144×144 save space.
• 🌐 Upload photos via Google Contacts (web version retains higher quality).
• 🛠️ Install a third-party launcher (like Nova Launcher) that supports displaying avatars in the original resolution.

Problem 3: Contact photo is reset after MIUI update.

🔹 Decision:

• 🔗 Link your contact to your Google Account (not your phone’s memory) – this will protect your data when you reset your settings.
• 📲 Before updating, make a backup of contacts through Settings → System system → Backup.
• 📧 Export contacts to a.vcf file and save it to the cloud (e.g. Google Drive).

💡

If a photo of a contact is missing after a phone is reset, it can only be recovered from a backup. Xiaomi does not store avatars on its servers - they are tied to either the device or Google Account.

6. How to optimize contact photos for better display

To make avatars look clear on the lock screen, in the call list and in instant messengers, follow these tips:

📏 Size and format:

• 🖼️ Optimum resolution: 512×512 pixels (square image).
• 🎨 Format: JPEG or PNG (transparently).
• 📏 File weight: no more than 100 KB (otherwise) MIUI It might squeeze it too hard).

🎨 Pre-loading editing:

• 👤 Cut the photo so that the face occupies 70-80% of the frame (on small screens, details are lost).
• 🌈 Increase the contrast and brightness of the AMOLED-Xiaomi screens faint photos merge with the background.
• 🔍 Check how the avatar looks in thumbnail (e.g., in the contact list).

📱 Automation applications:

7. Frequent Questions (FAQ)