How much Internet spends Xiaomi: how to check the traffic consumption and reduce it by 2 times

Have you noticed that mobile internet on Xiaomi is running out too fast even though you barely use your phone? or does the carrier send notifications when you’ve only checked your email and messengers? The problem isn’t your forgetfulness – modern smartphones (especially on MIUI) are actively consuming traffic in the background even when the screen is off.

In this article, we’ll look at how to know exactly how much internet is spent on Xiaomi, from built-in tools to third-party apps. You’ll learn which Xiaomi services are eating traffic without your knowledge (spoiler: it’s not just Google Play Services), how to distinguish normal from abnormal, and what to do if your phone burns gigabytes per night. And at the end, a table of average traffic consumption for popular tasks (from watching TikTok to online games) so you can compare your data with the norm.

Where to see traffic consumption on Xiaomi: built-in MIUI tools

The easiest way to check how much internet your Xiaomi has used is to use standard settings. MIUI. They show detailed statistics for each application, but there are nuances: data is reset when you reboot or change. SIM-maps, and some system processes may be hidden under a common name.

To open the traffic report:

1. Go to Settings. → SIM-maps and mobile networks.
2. Choose yours. SIM-card (if there are several).
3. Tap on Traffic Use (or Mobile Data Consumption in new MIUI versions).
4. Here you will see a flow chart for the current period and a list of applications sorted by the amount of traffic consumed.

Now, notice two things:

• 📊 Accounting period: default MIUI Resets the meter at the beginning of each month, but you can set your date manually (for example, by the date of the tariff replenishment).
• 🔍 Hidden Processes: Some applications (such as Mi Cloud or Xiaomi Service Framework) may not appear in the list, but consume traffic to sync.

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If you see a high-end Android System or MIUI Daemon on your app list, it's not a mistake. These processes are responsible for system updates, validation of application licenses, and Xiaomi services. They can't be turned off completely, but you can limit them (more on that below).

Top.-5 Apps that secretly eat your traffic to Xiaomi

Even if you haven’t run some programs, they can consume the internet in the background, and here are the top traffic eaters on Xiaomi devices (data based on user analysis from MIUI 12-14):

Social media is especially insidious: it uploads content in advance, even when you don't open an app. For example, TikTok can download videos on the background stream to show you later, called preloading. You can turn it off in the app settings (Settings and Privacy → Data Use).

How to track traffic in real time (without root)

The built-in MIUI statistics show the data after the fact, but what if you need to catch the culprit right now?

1. Use Developer Mode: Activate Developer Mode: Go to Settings → About Phone and tap MIUI 7 times. Go back to Settings → Additional → Developer and enable Network Traffic. Now the notification panel will display the current download/return rate.
2. Install a third-party application (e.g. Internet Speed Meter or GlassWire): 📱 These programs show real-time traffic consumption by application. 🔍 You can set up alerts when exceeding a given limit. ⚠️ Some antiviruses (e.g. Avast) block applications as “suspicious” – add them to the exceptions.

If you notice that traffic is going away even when your phone is idle, check:

• 🔄 Auto-update apps in Google Play (disabled in store settings).
• 📤 Background data transfer in messengers (for example, Telegram by default downloads media files automatically).
• 🌐 VPN or proxy that can work in hidden mode (check in Settings) → VPN).

How to limit background traffic on Xiaomi: step-by-step instructions

If you find that most of the Internet is going nowhere, it’s time to take control. Here are 4 key settings that will help you reduce your traffic consumption by 30-50%:

1. Disable the auto-update of applications:

• Open Google Play → click on the avatar → Settings → Network → Auto-update applications.
• Choose Only via Wi-Fi or Do Not Update Automatically.

2.Ban background traffic for individual applications:

• Go to Settings → Applications → Application Management.
• Select an app (such as Facebook) → Mobile data.
• Turn off the switch Background data and Unlimited data.

3. Limit synchronization of Mi Cloud:

• Go to Settings → Accounts and Sync → Mi Cloud.
• Turn off automatic photo/video downloads or set a file size limit.

4. Set up a warning about exceeding the limit:

• B Settings → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Using traffic.
• Set Warning (for example, 1.5 GB of 2 GB) and Limit (for 1.9 GB).
• When you reach the threshold, the mobile Internet will be turned off automatically.

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Even after all the setups, some system processes (like Google Play Services) will consume up to 100-200 MB per month. That's OK - they're needed for Android. But if the consumption exceeds 500 MB, check the phone for viruses or reset the network settings (Settings). → SIM-map → Resetting network settings).

How much traffic should be spent in the normal range?

To see how much your Xiaomi spends, compare your data to the averages for popular tasks. Note that the actual cost depends on the quality of the video, the frequency of use and the settings of the applications.

If your numbers are higher than these values, check:

• 🎥 Video quality: You can set a restriction on YouTube and TikTok (e.g., video quality, 480p instead 1080p).
• 🔄 Autoplay: in the settings of social networks, turn off automatic video playback.
• 📡 Weak network signal: With poor coverage, the phone spends more data on repeated requests.

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If you listen to music or podcasts often, download them in advance via Wi-Fi, for example, Spotify can save playlists offline, which will save up to 3-5 GB per month.

What to do if Xiaomi spends the Internet at night or on standby

One of the most common complaints of Xiaomi users is that the phone is idle and traffic is gone, and the reasons can range from MIUI bugs to hidden miners.

1. Check Active Connections: Install the NetGuard app (no root required) and see which programs are accessing the network at night. Notice unfamiliar processes with names like com.xiaomi.mipicks or com.miui.analytic are Xiaomi system services, but they should not consume more than 50MB per day.
2. Turn off Smart Optimization: Go to Settings → Battery and Performance → Smart Optimization. Turn off the option – it can run background processes to “improve the work.”
3. Check for viruses: Use Malwarebytes or the built-in scanner in MIUI Security (Settings → Memory → Viral Scanner). Pay attention to the Administrator-enabled apps (checked in Settings → Passwords & Security → Application Permits).

If the problem has not gone away, try resetting your network settings:

1. Go to Settings. → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Resetting network settings.
2. This will delete stored Wi-Fi networks and APN settings, but will not affect personal data.

Resetting the traffic counter and other hidden MIUI features

Sometimes users find that the traffic counter on Xiaomi shows incorrect data or zeros itself.

How to reset the meter manually:

1. Open the Settings. → SIM-maps and mobile networks → Using traffic.
2. Slap the icon. ⋮ (three points) in upper right corner.
3. Choose Reset Statistics.

How to change the accounting period (for example, under the date of replenishment of the tariff):

1. In the same section (Use of Traffic) click on the current date (e.g., June 1–30).
2. Select Set a reset date and set the desired day.

Hidden function: separate traffic accounting by SIM-map:

If you have two SIM slots, MIUI can show the total flow rate, so you can see the data for each card separately:

1. Go to Settings. → SIM-maps and mobile networks.
2. Choose the right one. SIM-map → Using traffic.

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MIUI 14 has introduced Traffic Savings (Settings → Connections & Sharing → Traffic Savings) to compress data when there is a weak signal and block background activity from applications, and turn it on if you are often in areas with poor coverage.

FAQ: Frequent questions about traffic consumption on Xiaomi