Where Xiaomi stores ringtones: system folders and custom tunes

Have you ever tried to find a folder with ringtones on your Xiaomi to add a favorite tune or remove annoying? System sounds on smartphones of this brand are stored in the most obvious places — their paths depend on the version of MIUI, the device model and even the firmware region. In this article, we will examine where standard ringtones lie, how to find custom tunes, and why they sometimes “disappear” after updates.

Xiaomi is actively modifying Android to hide some of its system folders from the user. For example, in Redmi Note 12, the path to ringtones may be different from what you see on POCO F5 — even if both models run MIUI 14. We analyzed current firmware from 2023-2026 and collected all possible locations, including hidden directories that do not appear in the standard file manager.

Standard Ways to Ringtones on Xiaomi: Where to Look for System Melodies

By default, all preset ringtones, alarms and notifications are stored in secure system folders, which cannot be deleted without root permissions, but can be copied for backup.

• 📁 /system/media/audio/ringtones — standard ringing melodies (for example, MIUI Ring, Reflection).
• 🔔 /system/media/audio/notifications — Notification sounds (Bamboo, Drop, etc.).
• ⏰ /system/media/audio/alarms — Alarm Signals (Morning Flower, Good Morning).
• 🎵 /system/media/audio/ui — System sounds (unlocking, photos, charging).

These folders are hidden from the user and can only be accessed through ADB or root-enabled file managers (like Root Explorer or FX File Explorer).If you try to open them through the standard Mi File Manager, the system will give you a No Access error or simply won’t display the content.

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To see hidden system folders without root, connect your smartphone to your PC and use the command adb pull /system/media/audio/ringtones in the terminal.

It is important to note that on some models (such as Xiaomi 13T or Redmi K60) paths can be virtualized due to the Dynamic System Updates (DSU) feature, in which case real files are stored in /apex or /product partitions, but for the average user this does not matter - the system still downloads them from standard locations.

Where to store custom ringtones on Xiaomi

If you have added your tune through your call settings, it is saved to one of the following folders (depending on the way you add):

The most reliable way to add a ringtone is to place the file in /storage/emulated/0/Ringtones, and then it automatically appears in the list of available tunes in the settings, and if the Ringtones folder is not available, you can create it manually.

On smartphones with MIUI 14+, user ringtones can “disappear” after updates due to a reset of the Media Storage app’s cache. To return them, just reboot the device or manually clear the cache of this application in the settings.

Why Ringtones Are Disappearing After MIUI Update

Many Xiaomi users are faced with a problem: after updating the firmware, all user tunes are lost.

1. Reset media databases with major updates (e.g., with MIUI 13 on MIUI 14) system media_provider, If the ringtone is not in the standard Ringtones folder, it can get lost».
2. Media Storage Cache Clearing: This system app indexes all audio files, and when it crashes, user ringtones are temporarily removed from the selection list.
3. For example, in MIUI 12, custom tunes were stored in /MIUI/ringtone, while in MIUI 14, priority was given to the Ringtones folder.

If ringtones are lost after resetting, you can try to restore them using applications like DiskDigger or Recuva (on PC), but the chances of success depend on whether the memory sectors have been overwritten.

How to add your ringtone to Xiaomi: step-by-step instructions

To set the custom ringtone of a call, follow this algorithm:

Prepare an audio file in MP3, M4A or OGG format (no larger than 5 MB) | Copy the file to /storage/emulated/0/Ringtones| Reboot the phone (optionally if the file does not appear in the settings) |Open Settings → Sounds → Call Melody and select your file

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If you want to use a snippet of the song, you can cut it right on your phone:

1. Open the Mi Music app (or any other app for playing music).

For advanced users, there is an alternative way to use ADB:

adb push your rington.mp3 /sdcard/Ringtones/


adb shell am broadcast -a android.intent.action.MEDIA_SCANNER_SCAN_FILE -d file:///sdcard/Ringtones/ your ringtone.mp3

This command not only copies the file, but also forcibly starts scanning media files so that the ringtone immediately appears in the settings.

How to Change the Ringtone for a Specific Contact

Xiaomi can assign a unique tune for individual contacts.

1. Open the Contacts app and select the contact you want.
2. Click on "Edit" (pencil icon).
3. Slip on the "Call Melody" (or "Notification Sound") field.
4. Select a standard tune or click Add → Local File to upload yours.

If the option "Call Melody" is missing, it means that the contact is saved not in the phone book, but on the phone. SIM-Put it in the memory of the device:

• 📱 Open contact. → «More" (three dots) → «Copy into the phone».
• 🔄 After copying, repeat the steps to assign the ringtone.

On some models (such as the POCO X5 Pro), this feature can be hidden in deep settings to activate it:

1. Go to Settings. → The phone.
2. Tap the MIUI version several times to enable the developer mode.
3. Go back to the basic settings, open “Advanced Settings” → “For Developers”.
4. Find the option “Show melody for contacts” and turn it on.

How to Reserve and Restore Ringtones

To avoid losing your favorite tunes when resetting or updating, back them up regularly.

• ☁️ Cloud Storage: Copy Ringtones folder to Google Drive, Mi Cloud, or Yandex Disk.
• 💻 Local Copy: Connect your phone to your PC and manually copy files to your hard drive.
• 📱 Third-party apps: use Titanium Backup (requires root) or Swift Backup to create a backup of system sounds.

For recovery:

1. Copy backup files back to /storage/emulated/0/Ringtones.
2. Restart your phone or run a media scan command: adb shell am broadcast -a android.intent.action.MEDIA_MOUNTED -d file:///sdcard
3. Check for melodies in the call settings.

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Backing up ringtones is especially important before updating MIUI or resetting settings. System tunes are restored automatically, but user tunes are not.

If you use MIUI Themes, export your favorite themes with sounds manually:

1. Open Topics → «My subjects».
2. Click on three dots next to the active topic → Export.
3. The theme file (.mtz) is saved to /storage/emulated/0/MIUI/theme/export. It can be imported back later.

Frequent Ringtones Problems on Xiaomi and Their Solutions

Let’s look at common mistakes and ways to eliminate them:

If after all the manipulations ringtones still do not work, check the sound settings:

1. Open the Settings. → Sounds and vibrations.
2. Make sure the call volume slider is not at zero.
3. Check if Do Not Disturb or In Your Pocket (can block sound) is activated.

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If the ringtone is too quiet, try to normalize its volume in the audio editor. Xiaomi has a limited maximum sound level for custom tunes (about 85% of the system).

FAQ: Answers to popular questions