How to completely remove the history of Yandex on the Xiaomi phone: search, browser, maps

Why Yandex’s history is accumulating on Xiaomi and how it is dangerous

Xiaomi smartphones (including the Redmi, POCO and Mi series) actively integrate Yandex services into MIUI firmware. Even if you did not install applications manually, pre-installed Yandex.Browser, Yandex.Search and Yandex.Maps automatically store your activity history. This creates three key problems:

First, the accumulated data takes up memory – up to 1.2 GB when used actively for a year (based on tests on Xiaomi 13 Pro with MIUI 14). Second, the geolocation history in Yandex.Maps can reveal your movements even after you delete the application. Third, synchronization with the Yandex account means that the data is stored on the company’s servers – they can be requested by law enforcement agencies or used for targeted advertising.

Unlike Google, where history is managed through a single Google Account, Yandex has each service (Search, Browser, Maps, Navigator) storing data separately, which makes it difficult to clean up, especially on Xiaomi, where services are often embedded in system applications.

Method 1: Delete Yandex search history through the application

The most obvious, but not always effective, method is to clean up right in the Yandex app, which is suitable for users who are actively using the search bar on the home screen or in the browser. Importantly, this method does not delete data from Yandex servers if you are logged in to your account.

Instructions for MIUI 12-15:

• 📱 Open the Yandex app (icon with the letter “I” on a yellow background).
• 🔍 Slip on your avatar in the upper right corner → Choose Search History.
• 🗑️ Press three points (⋮) top-down → Delete.
• ⏳ Select the period: Last hour, Today, All time (recommended).
• ✅ Confirm removal by pressing OK.

Make sure you are not logged in to Yandex |Close all tabs in Yandex.Browser |Disable synchronization in account settings |Check if Yandex widget is used on the home screen-->

On models POCO X5 Pro and Redmi Note 12 with HyperOS shell (2026) the path may be different: instead of an avatar, you need to tap on the icon. ⚙️ Settings at the bottom of the screen, then select History → Clean up.

⚠️ Note: If you use Yandex voice search (e.g., via Alice), its history is stored separately. To delete it, go to Alice Settings → History of requests.

Method 2: Clearing the cache and data of Yandex.Browser

Yandex.Browser on Xiaomi is often installed by default instead of Google Chrome.It stores not only your browsing history, but also cookies, passwords, autocomplete data. Complete cleaning requires deleting the cache and application data.

Step-by-step:

1. Open the phone settings → Apps.
2. In the search bar, enter “Yandex.Browser” → select the application.
3. Slip the Warehouse and cash.
4. Click Clear the cache (this will delete temporary files).
5. Then select Clear Data → Confirm the action.

On Xiaomi 12T and new Android 13+ models, after clearing the data, the browser can offer to restore a history from Google Account – opt out if you want complete privacy.

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If after cleaning the browser still shows old bookmarks, check synchronization with the account Yandex in the menu Settings → Accounts.

Method 3: Removal of geolocation history in Yandex.Maps

Yandex.Maps and Yandex.Navigator store the routes, searches and places you visited — even if the application has been deleted long ago.

To remove the location history:

• 🗺️ Open Yandex.Maps → Slip on the avatar in the upper right corner.
• 📊 Choose a History. → Places visited.
• 🗑️ Press Delete. → Select a period (All the time for complete cleaning).
• 🔄 To delete search queries, go to the Search tab and repeat the action.

On Xiaomi with MIUI 14+, geodata can be duplicated in the Google Location History system service.

1. Go to Settings → Google → Manage your Google account.
2. Select Data and Personalization → Location History.
3. Turn off the option or delete the data manually.

⚠️ Note: If you have used Yandex.Navigator with voice control (for example, through Alice), the history of voice commands is stored separately. → The history of voice commands.

Method 4: Resetting Yandex Services Settings via MIUI

On Xiaomi smartphones, some of the services are integrated at the system level, such as the home screen search widget or the voice assistant Alice can save data even after the main applications are removed, in which case the reset will help.

How to reset the settings of Yandex services:

1. Open Settings → Applications → Application Management.
2. In the search bar, enter “Yandex” – find all related applications (Yandex.Search, Yandex.Vidget, Alice).
3. For each application, select Storage → Clear Data.
4. Reboot the phone.

On the Redmi K60 and POCO F5 models with HyperOS, an additional step may be required: disabling system applications.

• 🔧 Go to Settings. → The phone. → Tap 7 times on the version MIUI, to activate the Developer Mode.
• 🛠️ Back to Settings → Additionally. → For developers.
• 🔄 Enable the option to disable system applications.
• 🗑️ Now in Application Management you can disable (do not delete!) unnecessary services of Yandex.

Method 5: Completely delete Yandex account (for advanced)

If you want to permanently erase all data related to your activity on Yandex (including search history, maps, mail, and even Yandex.Money), you can delete your account completely.

Instructions for deleting the account:

1. 🌐 Go to the site. passport.yandex.ru/profile smartphone-computer.
2. 🔒 Log in under your login.
3. 🗑️ Scroll down to the Delete Account block → press Delete.
4. 📝 Enter the reason for the deletion (e.g., “I want to clear the history”) and confirm.
5. 📧 The specified email will receive a letter with a link for confirmation - click on it.

After deleting the account:

• ✅ All data (search, maps, mail) will be erased from Yandex servers within 30 days.
• ❌ You will lose access to Yandex.Mail, Yandex.Disk, Yandex.Music and other services.
• 🔄 On the phone Xiaomi will have to manually delete all applications Yandex and clean their data (see Method 4).

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Deleting Yandex’s account is the only way to guarantee that it will erase all data from the company’s servers, but it will also cut off access to all ecosystem services, including email and cloud storage.

Additional measures: how to prevent the preservation of history in the future

To prevent Yandex history from accumulating again, set up your phone and account according to these rules:

1. Turn off synchronization in Yandex applications:

• 🔄 In Yandex.Browser: Settings → Synchronization → Shut down.
• 📍 In Yandex.Maps: Profile → Settings → History → Disable saving.
• 🎤 In Alice: Settings → History of requests → Keep it alive.

2. Replace system applications with alternatives:

• 🌐 Install Google Chrome or Firefox instead of Yandex.Browser.
• 🗺️ Use Google Maps or 2GIS instead of Yandex.Maps.
• 🔍 Configure Google Search as the default widget (to do this, remove the Yandex widget from the home screen).

3. Limit the rights of applications:

• 📱 Go to Settings. → Annexes → Permits.
• 📍 For Yandex.Maps and Yandex.Navigator, disable access to Geodata.
• 🎤 For Alice, turn off access to the microphone and contact.

On Xiaomi with MIUI 13+, you can completely block the background activity of Yandex applications:

1. Open Settings → Battery and Performance → Background Activity Management.
2. Find Yandex apps and select Limit.

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If you use public Wi-Fi frequently, turn on Incognito mode in your browser (in Yandex.Browser – Private access), which will prevent the history from being saved on your device, but will not protect you from being tracked by the ISP.

Frequent Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Many Xiaomi users are faced with the fact that the history of Yandex reappears even after cleaning.

If you use Xiaomi with global firmware (for example, Redmi Note 11 Global), some Yandex system applications may not be available, in which case it is enough to clear the Yandex.Browser and Yandex.Maps data, if installed.

⚠️ Note: On Chinese firmware phones (e.g. Xiaomi 13 China), Yandex services have been replaced by Baidu and Sogou.

FAQ: Answers to popular questions