How to Turn Off Traffic Savings on Xiaomi: The Complete Guide

Xiaomi smartphone owners often face a situation where background processes stop updating and messengers do not send notifications on time. This is a classic manifestation of the aggressive optimization of the MIUI system, which by default seeks to save battery power and save Internet traffic. Traffic savings are a useful feature for those who use limited tariff plans, but it can seriously interfere with the comfortable use of the device in the background.

The Chinese-made Android shell has several layers of limitations, which can be applied globally to the entire system or point-by-point to each application installed. Understanding this hierarchy is necessary to completely free up the data channel. In this article, we will discuss all the layers of protection and settings that block background activity.

Turning off these features will bring back the normal speed of Internet services, and you'll notice that mail starts coming in instantly, and cloud storage stops waiting for Wi-Fi to sync, and let's take a closer look at where those settings are hiding.

Global traffic saving settings in MIUI

The first step is to check the general parameters of the system, which is where the basic algorithm of how a smartphone behaves when connecting to a mobile network is set, and global settings are often ignored by users, even though they are the primary filter for all traffic.

You have to open the standard Security app, which is a lightning green icon, and it's a control center, where you have all the optimization tools, and you have to find the traffic section, and you go to the details.

⚠️ Warning: Changing global settings can lead to increased mobile traffic consumption.Make sure your data plan allows for large amounts of data to be transferred in the background.

Inside the traffic settings menu, there's a switch that activates austerity, which will allow apps to run more freely, but it doesn't guarantee complete freedom for each service, because there are individual restrictions.

Next, check your data compression settings if they are active at the firmware level. Some versions of MIUI offer optimization of page and content loading, which is also worth turning off for maximum speed.

Individual restrictions for applications

Xiaomi's system allows you to flexibly manage network access rights for every software you install. You can deny Internet access via mobile or Wi-Fi for specific programs. It's a powerful tool, but it often works against the user by blocking important notifications.

To set this up, go to the traffic management menu and select Traffic Limitation, where you will see a complete list of all installed programs, with two icons on the right of each name: the green arrow (Wi-Fi) and the yellow arrow (mobile data).

If the yellow arrow is crossed by the red line, then the mobile Internet access for this application is closed. You need to click on the icon to become active, this action will allow the program to transmit data through the network of the carrier.

• 📱 Find your messengers (Telegram, WhatsApp, Viber) and make sure they have access to both types of networks.
• 📧 Check email clients and cloud storage that require constant synchronization.
• 🛒 Don’t forget about taxi apps, food delivery apps, and navigators that need real-time internet.

This detail allows, for example, to prevent heavy gaming or video hosting from operating over a mobile network, leaving this priority to important work tools, which helps balance between cost savings and functionality.

Browser settings and data compression

Special attention should be paid to the settings of web browsers, especially the standard Mi Browser and Google Chrome, which have their own savings mechanisms that compress traffic on servers before sending to the device, which speeds up loading on weak networks, but reduces the quality of images and can disrupt some scripts.

In Chrome, you need to go to settings, find “Light Mode” (or “Traffic Savings”) and deactivate it. In newer versions of Android, this feature can be hidden or renamed to “Simplified Mode”; disabling it will cause the browser to load full versions of pages.

The standard browser from Xiaomi also has its own settings. They are usually in the profile menu or in the privacy settings section, there may be an item called “Download Acceleration” or similar, which uses proxy services to compress content.

Disabling these features is especially important for users who work with graphics or layout, as compression can distort the display of elements on the page. CAPTCHA and other security mechanisms of the website.

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Use incognito mode to check if the browser’s cache or extensions affect page load speeds when traffic savings are disabled.

Background activity and battery

Often the problem with the lack of internet in the background is not network settings, but aggressive energy saving. MIUI is known for its tight control of background processes. If an application is “sedated” to save charge, it will not be able to update data even if access to the network is formally allowed.

You need to go to the battery settings and find a list of applications, select the desired program and set the "No Limits" mode. The standard "Saving Charge" mode can block network activity as soon as you turn off the application window.

It's also worth checking your autorun settings, and if an application is not authorized to autorun, the system may prevent it from running a network service after a phone restart or long downtime, which is a common reason why notifications only come after you manually open the application.

A comprehensive approach to battery and network settings is the best thing to do, and don’t worry that your phone will run out faster if you’re using your smartphone extensively throughout the day.

Reset network settings and APN

If the software settings don’t help, the problem may lie in the incorrect access point (APN) settings. Operators periodically change the settings, and old profiles may conflict with new requirements or work in compression mode.

To solve this problem, go to the mobile network menu and find “Access Points (APN)” option. Click on the menu (three dots in the corner) and select “Reset to default settings.” This action will remove all manual changes and restore your carrier’s factory settings.

→ SIM-maps and mobile networks → Access points (APN) → Reset

After reset, it is recommended to restart the device, which will allow the system to re-register on the network with updated parameters, in most cases, this solves problems with slow speed or blocking background connections.

Use of the developer mode

For advanced users, there is a way to fine-tune through the developer menu, where you can control the behavior of the system at a deeper level, but beware: incorrect changes can lead to unstable operation of the device.

To get into this menu, you need to click on the build number several times in the About section, and after activation, the option "Developers" will appear in additional settings, and we are interested in the section related to the network and background processes.

You can find options here that prohibit background data transfer for all applications at once. Make sure that such global bans are not activated. It is also worth checking the "Aggressive Sleeping Mode" settings for Wi-Fi.

⚠️ Warning: Don't change the values in the developer menu unless you're sure of their purpose.This could disrupt Bluetooth, GPS mobile.

These tools are useful when standard methods fail to achieve the desired result. In normal situations, the settings described in the previous sections are sufficient.

Frequent problems and their solutions

Even after you have done all the settings, users may be faced with the nuances of specific applications, such as Instagram or TikTok may require separate permissions to download high-quality media files, sometimes helping to reinstall the problematic application after resetting all network settings.

Another common problem is the conflict with VPN-Third-party security programs can intercept traffic and apply their filtering rules, ignoring system settings. MIUI. Check your antivirus settings.

If you are using a corporate SIM-map or phone profiles are installed MDM (Mobile Device Management, restrictions can be set remotely by the administrator, and you can't change the settings yourself.

Disabling settings on the phone will not remove this restriction, you need to contact the service provider.

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Completely disabling traffic savings requires a comprehensive approach: system settings, individual application rights and battery settings.

Impact of MIUI Updates on Settings

With each update to the MIUI shell and Android operating system, the menu structure may change, items may be renamed or moved to other sections, and this is normal, as manufacturers are constantly improving their energy saving algorithms.

After a major firmware update, always recheck your settings. The system can automatically activate savings modes to “optimize” the work after the update, especially for the newer versions of Android 13 and 14, where background management has become even more stringent.

If you can't find a item, search by settings. Type in the keyword traffic or savings, and the system will show relevant menu sections, faster than searching manually in a confusing interface.

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions