How to allocate contacts to Xiaomi: all ways to MIUI

Why it is important to make contacts with Xiaomi

Xiaomi's current MIUI-based smartphones store hundreds of contacts, from colleagues to casual acquaintances. But how quickly do you find important numbers in this stream? Selecting key subscribers saves time and reduces the risk of missing an important call, such as setting up a unique color for family contacts, a special ringtone for the boss or a vibration for delivery.

In this article, we’ll cover all the working methods of highlighting contacts on Redmi, POCO, and other Xiaomi devices (relevant to MIUI 12-14). From basic features to hidden features, you’ll learn how to make sure important people never go unnoticed.

Before you start, check the MIUI version: go to Settings → About Phone → MIUI version. If you have a version below 12, some features may not be available – update the firmware through Settings → System Update.

Method 1: Color marking of contacts

The most visual way to highlight a contact is to give it a unique color, which works in the standard Contacts app (not Google Contacts!).

1. Open the Contacts app (an icon with a person’s silhouette).
2. Find the right contact and tap it.
3. In the upper right corner, click Edit (pencil icon).
4. Scroll down to the Color Tags block and select one of 12 options.
5. Save the changes with the Ready button.

Now, this contact will be displayed in the list with the color bar on the left, and the colors are stored in both the call log and SMS. Please note that if you sync contacts with Google Account, the color tags will not be transferred to other devices - this is a local MIUI function.

Update the Contacts app in the Play Market

Make sure the contact is saved in the Xiaomi phone book (not in SIM)

Check that sync with Mi Account is enabled (if you need to save tags after resetting)

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⚠️ Note: On some models (e.g, POCO F3 Global firmware option "Tag Color" may not be available. In this case, use alternative methods from this article.

Method 2: Individual ringtones and vibrations

Customizing a unique call or vibration sound for a contact is a classic method that works on all versions of MIUI. This is especially useful if you want to distinguish calls from loved ones in the background of spam.

• 📞 Open the contact and click Edit.
• 🔊 Slip on the field "Rington by default" (or "Call Sound").
• 🎵 Select a melody from the list or click Add to upload your file (formats.mp3,.m4a).
• 📳 For vibration, go to Vibration and select a template (for example, Heartbeat for Lovers or Double Signal for Work).

The important point is that if the contact is saved SIM-map, individual audio settings will not apply. Move this contact to your phone memory or Google Account. → No sound or vibration activated Quiet or Do Not Disturb mode – it covers individual settings.

Method 3: Contact Groups and Mass Management

If you want to identify a whole group of people (e.g., Work or Family), use contact groups to apply settings to all group members at the same time.

1. Open Contacts → Groups (the tab at the bottom of the screen).
2. Click Create a Group and give it a name (e.g, "VIP-clientele").
3. Add participants by ticking the necessary contacts.
4. For the group, you can adjust the overall ringtone or color of the label (in the group settings).

The advantage of groups is that you can hide notifications from the whole group or prioritize them, like creating a spam group and turning off the sounds for it, so you don't get distracted by unnecessary calls, and to manage the group's notifications:

Settings → Notifications → Contacts → Group settings → [Select Group]

⚠️ Note: When you delete a group, contacts remain in the phone book, but lose group settings. To completely delete contacts, do it manually or through Settings. → Contact management → Delete contacts.

Method 4: Priority Contacts in Do Not Disturb

MIUI's Do Not Disturb (DND) mode allows you to skip all calls except the select ones, which is ideal if you want important people to be able to reach you even at night.

• 🛡️ Go to Settings. → Sounds and vibrations → Don't disturb.
• 🔄 Activate the mode and select "Allow exceptions".
• 📞 In the "Calls" section, click "Favourite Contacts".
• ⭐ Add to your favorites those whose calls are always due (maximum 12 contacts).

In this mode, you can also set up repeat calls: if the same person calls twice within 3 minutes, the call will pass. This is useful for emergencies. Note that DND mode does not block SMS - you need to separately configure the filtering of messages in the Messages application.

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If you get frequent calls from unknown numbers, activate the "Do Not Disturb" option "Allow Contact Calls" to automatically block any numbers not saved in the phone book.

Method 5: Featured Contacts Widget on the Home Screen

To quickly access important contacts, add a "Favorite Contacts" widget to the home screen, which saves time searching the phone book.

1. Click the empty space on the home screen and select Widgets.
2. Find the Contacts widget (usually in the Systems section).
3. Select the size of the widget (4×1, 4×2, or 2×2) and drag it to the screen.
4. Click on the widget, then edit and add up to 8 contacts.

The widget supports fast action: one tap is a call, a long tap opens a contact card. On MIUI 14, the widget can be configured to show photos of contacts (if added). If the widget does not update, restart the launcher: press the main screen → Screen settings → Restart.

Hidden Opportunities: Smart Notifications for Contacts

MIUI hides one useful feature: the ability to configure notifications for individual contacts in instant messengers. This works not only for calls, but also for SMS, WhatsApp, Telegram and other applications. For example, you can make messages from your spouse always appear on the lock screen, even if the phone is in Do Not Disturb mode.

How to set up:

• 📱 Open the Settings. → Notifications → Management of notifications.
• 🔍 Find an app (such as “Messages” or “WhatsApp”) and tap it.
• 👤 Enable the option "Priority Notifications".
• 🔄 Return to the app, open a chat with the right contact and secure it (on WhatsApp – click on the name). → "Lock the chat").

For SMS, you can additionally configure floating notifications:

Settings → Notifications → Messages → Notification style → Pop-up notifications

⚠️ Attention: POCO X3 Pro and some other models may call the "Priority Notifications" option "Important Notifications." If not, update the app through Play Market.

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The combination of fixed chat in the messenger + priority notifications in MIUI ensures that you do not miss an important message, even if the phone is silent.

FAQ: Frequent questions about allocating contacts in Xiaomi