How to watch traffic per month for Xiaomi

Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO smartphone owners often face the need to monitor their Internet connection, especially when using data-driven tariffs. MIUI provides built-in tools to track in detail how many megabytes or gigabytes were spent over a period, helping to avoid unexpected charges and understand which app is eating up the most traffic.

Traffic analysis is important not only to save budget, but also to identify background processes that can be quietly wasting network resources. HyperOS and older versions of the shell offer flexible settings that allow you to set limits and even completely deny access to the network for individual programs. In this article, we will discuss in detail all available methods of monitoring.

Don’t rely on notifications from the carrier, as they often come late or round up data. Local statistics on the device show information in real time, which allows you to instantly respond to abnormally high traffic consumption and adjust your smartphone settings.

Where to find statistics in the Security app

The main tool for managing network parameters in Xiaomi smartphones is the system application Security. It combines the functions of antivirus, cleaner and traffic manager. To get started, you need to run this tool, the icon of which is usually located on the home screen or in the Tools folder.

Once you open the app, look for an icon with a diagram image or the words “Data Transfer.” Traffic statistics in MIUI are automatically reset to the date you specified as the beginning of the billing period, which is critical for accurate accounting. If you see the total number but it does not meet your expectations, it is possible that the reset date is incorrect or does not coincide with the connection date of your tariff.

Inside the statistics section, you can see a pie chart showing the ratio of traffic used to available traffic, and you can see the details on mobile Internet and Wi-Fi connections, and you can click on the tabs to access the deeper analysis.

⚠️ Note: If you have changed SIM-map or tariff plan, be sure to check the limit settings so that the system does not block the Internet ahead of time or, conversely, does not allow you to go into deep minus.

For those who prefer the classic way, there is an opportunity to access statistics through standard Android settings. However, the functionality there may be less detailed than native tools Xiaomi.

Setting limits and payment period

To be useful, you need to calibrate the statistics correctly. From the traffic management menu, select Settings (usually a gear in the corner or a menu button) and set the period start date. Set the number that corresponds to the date your tariff is connected to from the carrier.

Then you set a traffic limit, enter the amount of data your operator provides per month, the system will calculate the remaining volume and warn you when you reach the thresholds, usually when you use 80% and 100% of the set limit.

It's important to choose the right network type to set the restrictions. You can set separate limits for mobile Internet and Wi-Fi, although this is rarely the case for home networks. Make sure the Traffic Limit switch is activated, otherwise notifications won't come.

Analysis of consumption by application

One of the most useful features is the ability to see which application consumes the most data. In the statistics section, click on Statistics or Traffic Consumption, and you will see a list of all installed programs, sorted by the amount of traffic consumed.

You can see here the separation between background traffic and active traffic, and it often turns out that social networks or messengers consume a significant amount of data even when the screen is off, and this involves automatically downloading media files and synchronizing.

By clicking on a specific application in the list, you can customize its network access in detail. MIUI allows you to completely ban data transmission over a mobile network or Wi-Fi for a selected program. This is a great way to stop the “voracious” applications that you rarely use on the road.

Limitation of background activity

Background traffic is a hidden resource that is often overlooked. Many apps continue to download content, send analytics and update data even when you’re not using it. In the traffic statistics list, these apps are labeled with an appropriate icon or categorized as a separate category.

To limit background activity, go to the settings of a particular application through the statistics menu. Find the Background Connection or Background Data Transfer switch and turn it off. After that, the application will only be able to log on when you open it.

This is especially useful for applications that do not require a constant online status: games, document editors, calculators or offline navigators.

⚠️ Note: Do not turn off background data transfer for messengers (WhatsApp, Viber, Telegram) if you want to receive notifications of new messages in real time. Otherwise, messages will only come after opening the application.

There is also a global setting that allows you to disable background data transfers for all applications at once, except for selected exceptions, and you can find it in the Data Transfer menu -> Restrict Background Connection, a radical but effective method of saving.

Traffic saving regime

Xiaomi has a special traffic saving mode that optimizes network connection, when activated, the system compresses data before downloading it, blocks ads in some browsers and limits background activity, and you can turn this feature on in the Security app under Traffic Savings.

When you turn on the saving mode, you may notice a slight decrease in the quality of images on social networks or a longer load of “heavy” pages, but in the conditions of a bad signal or with a gigabyte packet running out, this becomes a salvation.

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Use Wi-Fi Only mode for heavy upgrades. If you need to upgrade an app over 100MB, the system may request confirmation. It's better to wait for the Wi-Fi connection to avoid spending your mobile limit.

You also need to look at the settings of the apps themselves, for example, YouTube or VK can manually set the default video quality when using a mobile network, and reducing the quality from 1080p to 480p or 360p reduces traffic consumption by 5-10 times.

Additional tools and widgets

For easy monitoring, you can display the Traffic Statistics widget on your desktop, which allows you to see the rest of the megabytes without going deep into the menu, and then press the blank space on the screen, select the Widgets, and find the corresponding item from the Security app.

In addition, the access point settings can set a limit for connected devices, so if you distribute the Internet to a laptop or tablet, the system will notify you when the connected device will use up a specified amount, which helps control the flow when other gadgets are connected to your smartphone.

Remember to check your network connection settings periodically, at least once a month. HyperOS or MIUI system updates can sometimes reset user configurations or change the algorithms of background services.

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A comprehensive approach to traffic saving includes not only setting limits, but also competent management of the background activity of applications and adjusting the quality of content in media services.