How to disable auto-save in WhatsApp on Xiaomi: full instructions with pictures

Automatically saving photos and videos from WhatsApp on Xiaomi smartphones is a convenient feature, but it quickly clogs up device memory and consumes mobile traffic. This is especially true for users with limited tariffs or small amount of internal memory. In this article, we will discuss how to fully or partially disable auto-save media files in the messenger, and also consider the hidden settings of MIUI, which will help optimize the application.

To make matters worse, WhatsApp defaults to saving all images and videos to the gallery, even if you haven’t opened them. On Xiaomi, this results in duplicate files: they are stored in both the messenger folder and the DCIM/WhatsApp system gallery. Fortunately, there is a solution — and it doesn’t require root rights or complex manipulations.

Why is WhatsApp’s auto-save on Xiaomi eating away at memory?

The main reason is WhatsApp's aggressive default policy.

• 📷 Photos (even in groups with hundreds of participants)
• 🎥 Videos (including short clips and GIFs)
• 🎵 Audio (voice messages and music)
• 📄 Documents (PDF, Word, Excel)

On Xiaomi, the situation is exacerbated by the built-in Gallery app, which scans all folders on the device and adds media files from WhatsApp to it.

• 📉 Memory is filled with garbage (especially if you are in active chat rooms)
• 📡 Traffic is spent on the background download of unnecessary files
• 🔍 Gallery becomes overloaded with duplicates and irrelevant content

Important: On Xiaomi smartphones with MIUI 12 shell and newer auto-save works differently than on “pure” Android. The system creates a separate WhatsApp folder in the gallery that can not be simply hidden – it must be excluded from scanning manually.

Method 1: Disable auto-save in WhatsApp settings

The easiest way is to configure the download parameters of the media directly in the messenger, which will not delete the files already saved, but will stop downloading new ones.

Instructions:

1. Open WhatsApp and tap on three dots in the upper right corner.
2. Select Settings → Warehouse and data.
3. In the Automatic Media Download section, click on When using Mobile Data.
4. Uncheck all types of files: Photos, Audio, Videos, Documents.
5. Repeat steps 3-4 for partitions When connecting to Wi-Fi and Roaming.

After this, WhatsApp will stop automatically saving media files, and you can download them manually by clicking on the download icon next to the message.

Sync with Google Photos disabled|WhatsApp folder removed from gallery MIUI|Cleared cache memory messenger|Checked free space on the device-->

Method 2: Exclude WhatsApp from MIUI Gallery

Even after WhatsApp shuts down auto-save, the old files will remain in the gallery to hide them:

Steps for MIUI 12/13/14:

1. Open the Gallery app.
2. Tap it on three points. → Settings.
3. Select Folders or Folder Management (depending on version).
4. Find the WhatsApp folder (usually in the Other folders section).
5. Move the slider to the right to turn off the display.

⚠️ Note: This won’t delete files physically – they will remain on the device but won’t show up in the gallery. Use the file manager or WhatsApp storage settings for complete cleanup.

Method 3: Using a file manager to clean up

If you want to not only disable autosave, but also delete already accumulated files, use the built-in file manager from Xiaomi:

Step-by-step:

1. Open Files (the icon with the folder on the desktop).
2. Go to the Inner Memory → WhatsApp → Media.
3. Open the WhatsApp Images, WhatsApp Video, etc. folders.
4. Select unnecessary files (with a long tap) and click Delete.
5. For a complete cleanup, go to Settings → Storage → WhatsApp → Clear the cache.

⚠️ Note: Delete files from the folder WhatsApp/Databases You're gonna lose your chat history, don't touch this directory unless you've backed up.

Once a week.|Once a month|Only when the place ends.|Never clean.-->

Method 4: Set up sync with Google Photos (for cloud users)

Many Xiaomi users use Google Photos to back up, and by default, the app automatically uploads all media files to the cloud, including those coming to WhatsApp.

Instructions:

1. Open Google Photos.
2. Slip on the profile avatar → Photo settings.
3. Select Backup and Synchronization.
4. Press Backup Management.
5. Find the WhatsApp folder and turn it off sync.

This will prevent unnecessary files from being uploaded to the cloud and save space in your Google account.

💡

If you share screenshots on WhatsApp often, create a separate folder for them in the file manager and set up an exception for it in the MIUI gallery.

Hidden MIUI Settings for WhatsApp Optimization

The MIUI shell has several hidden features that help manage autosave more flexibly, such as limiting the background activity of an application or preventing it from creating folders in a gallery.

How to do this:

1. Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. Find WhatsApp and open its settings.
3. Select Permissions and disable Storage (this will block the creation of new files, but the messenger will work with restrictions).
4. Go back and tap the Battery → Background Limit → Select Limit.

⚠️ Note: Restricting storage permissions may cause WhatsApp to crash (e.g., no voice messages or backups will be saved.

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

When disabling autosave, users often face typical problems:

• 🔄 "Files reappear in the gallery after update MIUI" → Solution: Re-exclude WhatsApp folder from the gallery, as resets occur with large updates.
• 📥 "Important documents are not downloaded" → Solution: Enable Document-only autosave in WhatsApp settings by disabling other file types.
• ⚠️ "All chats disappeared after cleaning WhatsApp folder" → Solution: Restore the backup from Settings → chat → Backup copy (if created).

Another common mistake is to confuse auto-save (downloading files to your device) and backup (saving chat history to the cloud).

💡

Disabling autosave does not affect chat backup. To fully control data storage, configure both WhatsApp options: both media downloads and backups.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions