How to put your music on the Xiaomi smartphone: instructions for MIUI

Customized contact ringtone on Xiaomi is not only convenient, it's also stylish. You can no longer confuse an important call from your boss with a message from a friend if you have your own unique music for everyone. However, the standard MIUI settings aren't always obvious, especially for new users. In this article, we'll look at all the current ways to set a tune for contact, from basic to hidden firmware features.

Many people have a problem when Settings → Sounds doesn't have the option to link music to a particular subscriber, and the reason is because of the MIUI versions: since MIUI 12, the algorithm has changed, and MIUI 14/15 has added new limitations, but you can get around them - and we'll show how.

Important: If you use POCO Launcher or third-party shells, some of the features may be hidden, in which case we recommend temporarily switching to the standard Xiaomi launcher (Settings → Home Screen → Default Launcher).

Method 1: Using the standard Contacts app (MIUI 14/15)

This is the simplest method that works on most models: Redmi Note 12, Xiaomi 13, POCO X5 and others with up-to-date firmware. The instructions are suitable for contacts saved in the phone book or synchronized with Google Account.

Open the Contacts app, find the contact you want and tap it. In the upper right corner, click three dots (⋮) and select Set the ringtone. If that's not the case, then your version MIUI An alternative approach is required (see Method 2).

• 📱 For local contacts: the melody will only work on this device.
• ☁️ For Google Contacts: Setup syncs with your other gadgets (if sync is enabled).
• 🔊 Limitation: c MIUI 15 You cannot select a user MP3-file - only standard ringtones.

If the list does not contain a suitable tune, you can download additional ones through Settings → Sounds → Call Melodies. Both system sounds and downloads from Mi Community are available here.

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To quickly find a contact, search at the top of the Contacts screen. Type the first letters of a name or number and the system will show all matches.

Method 2: Use the Phone application (for incoming calls)

In some versions of MIUI (e.g., on the Redmi 10 or POCO M4 Pro), the tune setup is hidden in the Phone app.

1. Open the phone application (green handset).
2. Go to the Contacts tab (bottom of the screen).
3. Find the right contact and hold your finger on it for 2 seconds, and the context menu will appear.
4. Choose Edit, then scroll down to the Melody of the Call block.

In this menu, you can select one of the standard tunes or click Add to upload your file. However, there is a caveat: MIUI 14+ blocks the selection of custom MP3s from the file manager without additional manipulation (for this, see Method 4).

Method 3: Google Contacts (for synchronized accounts)

If your contacts are synced with a Google Account, you can customize your tune through the web version of Google Contacts, a technique that works on all Xiaomi smartphones but requires an internet connection.

Go to contacts.google.com (open in your browser on your PC or phone). Sign in with the same account you have on your smartphone. Find the contact you want, open it and click Edit (pencil icon). The Melody of the Call box will appear at the bottom, where you can select one of the standard Android sounds.

• ⚠️ Attention: user-generated MP3 You can’t download via the web version – only system ringtones.
• 🔄 Synchronization: Changes will apply to all devices that enable contact synchronization.
• ⏱️ Lag: It can take up to 5 minutes for the settings to apply on the smartphone.

After saving the changes, check if the melody has been updated on Xiaomi. If not, restart your phone or manually sync to Settings → Accounts → Google → Contact Sync.

Method 4: Install custom music through file manager (for advanced)

If you don't like standard ringtones, you can download your music, but MIUI restricts access to the folder with the tunes, so you have to use a workaround.

First, prepare the audio file:

1. Format:.mp3,.m4a or.ogg (maximum 5MB).
2. Duration: no more than 30 seconds (otherwise it will be circumcised).
3. Rename the file in Latin (for example, my_ringtone.mp3).

Now transfer the file to a special folder:

1. Connect your smartphone to your PC or open a file manager (such as Mi File Manager).
2. Go to Internal Storage → Ringtones, and if you don't have one, create it manually.
3. Copy the prepared file into this folder.
4. Reboot the phone.

After the reboot, your tune will appear in the list of available ringtones when editing the contact. If the file is not, check the permissions of the folder or use an alternative method (Method 5).

File in MP3/M4A/OGG| format

Duration up to 30 seconds |

Latin name with no spaces |

The file is copied to the Ringtones| folder.

Phone rebooted-->

⚠️ Note: On some models (Redmi) A1, POCO C50) The Ringtones folder can be hidden. To see it, turn on the hidden files in the file manager settings or use a PC.

Method 5: Third-party applications for flexible settings

If the standard methods don't work, Google Play apps will come to the rescue, and we tested a few and selected the most reliable ones:

To set the melody through Ringo (recommended):

1. Download and install the app from the Play Market.
2. Open it and give access to contacts and storage.
3. Select a contact from the list.
4. Click Select a melody and specify a file from the phone's memory.
5. Save the changes.

After setting up, check if the new tune is working. If the call is going through the standard Phone app but the music is not playing, clear the Phone app cache in the settings.

Problem Solving: Why is the melody not set?

If none of these methods worked, check out these points:

• 📵 Contact on SIM-Map: transfer it to your phone or Google Account.
• 🔕 Do Not Disturb Mode: Turn it off in Settings → Sounds. → Don't disturb.
• 🔄 Resetting: If the problem is after the update MIUI, Reset the Contacts app settings (Settings) → Annexes → Contacts → Warehouse → Drop it).
• 🛠️ System Error: Check firmware integrity in Settings → The phone. → Updating the system.

On some models (Xiaomi 12T, Redmi K50) after upgrading to MIUI 15, the choice of custom tunes is lost, in which case the rollback to MIUI 14 or the use of third-party applications will help (see Method 5).

⚠️ Note: If you use two of these SIM-cards, individual melodies can only work for the main SIM (The one that you choose for the default calls. To change priority, go to Settings. → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Default calls.

Bonus: How to set music to contact notifications

In addition to calling, you can set up unique sounds for SMS or notifications from messengers.

1. Open the Messages app (or WhatsApp/Telegram).
2. Find a chat with the right contact.
3. Tap it on three points (⋮) → Notifications → The sound of the notification.
4. Choose a tune from the list or upload yours (if supported).

On WhatsApp, the path will be different: Open chat → Contact Name → Castom notifications → Notification Sound. Telegram will need to create a separate notification folder in Settings → Notifications and sounds → Notifications Sounds.

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Individual tunes for notifications work only in those messengers where it is supported at the application level (WhatsApp, Telegram). SMS Xiaomi does not have this feature.

FAQ: Frequent questions about tune-ups on Xiaomi