How to Back Up and Restore Your Xiaomi or Redmi Phone

Xiaomi and Redmi phones give you three solid backup paths: Mi Cloud, local backup to internal storage, and Google One. We tested all three methods on a Redmi Note 13 Pro running HyperOS 1.0.4 and a Xiaomi 14 on HyperOS 2.0 to confirm each one works as described.

#How Do You Back Up a Xiaomi Phone to Mi Cloud?

Mi Cloud is the most hands-off option. Once enabled, your phone backs up automatically every night while charging on Wi-Fi. You don’t have to think about it after the initial setup.

Setting up Mi Cloud backup:

1. Go to Settings > Mi Account and sign in. Create a free account if you don’t have one.

2. Tap Mi Cloud, then tap Backup.

3. Toggle off Back up using cellular data unless you’re comfortable with the data usage. We leave this off on all our test devices.

4. Under Backup Items, confirm that Contacts, Call Logs, Messages, App Data, and Photos are all checked.

5. Tap Back Up Now to run your first manual backup and verify it completes successfully.

According to Xiaomi’s official support documentation, Mi Cloud stores your last 3 backup snapshots. If you exceed the 5 GB free tier, older snapshots get deleted first.

In our testing, a typical Redmi phone with 500 photos and 50 apps used about 2.8 GB of backup space. Upgrading costs $0.99/month for 50 GB or $2.99/month for 200 GB. If you primarily back up photos, Mi Cloud paid tiers cost less than comparable Google One plans.

#How to Do a Local Backup on Xiaomi or Redmi

Local backup writes a compressed archive to your phone’s internal storage. No internet required. On the Redmi Note 13 Pro, a 1 GB dataset backed up in about 2 minutes.

Steps for HyperOS and MIUI 14:

1. Open Settings, then go to Additional Settings > Backup & Restore > Local Backups.

2. Tap Create Backup and check the data categories you want. System data, contacts, call logs, and app data are selected by default.

3. Tap Back Up and wait. You’ll see a “Backup succeeded” confirmation when it’s done.

The backup file saves to Phone Storage/MIUI/backup/AllBackup/. Copy this folder to a computer or external drive after each backup. If your phone is lost or damaged, the local backup on that same device is gone too.

Three things matter for reliable local backups. First, confirm you have at least 2-3 GB of free internal storage before you start. Second, don’t take calls or unplug the charger during the process. Third, copy the backup folder to a PC or cloud storage right afterward.

Local backups don’t include Gallery photos by default. Back those up separately through Mi Cloud or Google Photos.

#Backing Up Xiaomi Data with Google One

Google One backup works independently of Mi Cloud and covers a different data set. We run both on our test phones since they protect different categories of data.

According to Google’s Android backup documentation, Google One backs up app data, call history, contacts, device settings, and SMS messages. It does not cover third-party app data for apps that haven’t integrated with Android’s backup API.

Enable Google One backup in 4 steps:

1. Go to Settings > Google > Backup.

2. Toggle on Backup by Google One, then tap Back Up Now to run an immediate backup.

3. Under Backup Details, verify that Apps, Contacts, Call History, and Device Settings show recent timestamps.

4. Leave the app. Backups run automatically over Wi-Fi going forward.

Google gives every account 15 GB free, shared across Gmail, Drive, and backups. Most phone backups without photos use under 3 GB, so you’ll rarely hit the limit unless your Gmail inbox is already large.

For a full walkthrough of managing Android app data across devices, see our guide on how to back up and restore Android apps.

#How Do You Restore a Xiaomi Phone from Backup?

Restoration depends on which backup type you used. Here’s how each one works.

Restore from Mi Cloud:

1. On a factory-reset phone, sign in to your Mi Account during the initial setup wizard.

2. Select Restore from Mi Cloud when prompted. Choose your most recent snapshot; the dates and file sizes make it easy to identify which one to use. If you skipped the setup wizard, go to Settings > Mi Account and sign in there instead.

3. Wait for the download and restore to complete. On our test device, a 2.1 GB backup took about 18 minutes over a 100 Mbps Wi-Fi connection.

4. Done.

Restore from local backup:

1. Go to Settings > Additional Settings > Backup & Restore > Local Backups, then tap the backup file you want. Select the data categories to restore, tap Restore, and confirm.

2. The phone reboots once after restoring.

Xiaomi’s HyperOS documentation confirms that cross-model restoration is supported. That means you can restore a Redmi Note backup to a Xiaomi 14, but some system-level customizations like home screen layouts and default app preferences may not carry over correctly between different hardware models running different chipsets.

For recovering data that wasn’t in a backup, our guide on Xiaomi data recovery covers deep-scan methods that work without a prior backup.

#When to Run a Manual Backup

Automatic backups handle your daily routine, but four situations call for an immediate manual backup before you proceed.

Back up before a HyperOS update, since updates occasionally reset settings or break app data. Always back up before a factory reset because once you reset, there’s no recovery without a prior snapshot. Back up before switching phones so you restore a current copy rather than a week-old auto-backup. And back up immediately after major app installs that hold data you’d hate to lose.

We run a manual Mi Cloud backup and copy the local backup to a PC before any significant phone change. That routine takes about 5 minutes and has saved us from data loss twice in two years of testing on multiple Xiaomi and Redmi models.

If something goes wrong with HyperOS during an update, our MIUI Recovery guide explains how to use recovery mode to fix your device without losing all your data.

#What to Do with WhatsApp Backups

Standard Mi Cloud and local backups don’t include WhatsApp’s encrypted chat database. WhatsApp handles its own backup through Google Drive separately. You won’t find your chat history in a Mi Cloud restore.

If you’re switching Xiaomi phones and need to move WhatsApp, our guide on transferring WhatsApp from iPhone to Xiaomi has the full process. If you’re moving to a Huawei instead, see our guide on transferring WhatsApp from Xiaomi to Huawei for that specific flow. Both cover how to back up WhatsApp to Google Drive before switching so the chats survive a factory reset.

#Bottom Line

Enable Mi Cloud and Google One backups together. That dual setup runs automatically and costs nothing with the free tiers. Before any factory reset or OS update, run one manual backup from each source. That three-layer approach covers almost every data loss scenario.

#Frequently Asked Questions

#Does a factory reset delete Xiaomi backups?

No. A factory reset only wipes data on your phone’s internal storage. Mi Cloud backups stay on Xiaomi’s servers, Google One backups stay on Google’s servers, and any files you’ve copied to a PC or external drive are unaffected.

#Can I restore a Xiaomi backup to a different Redmi model?

Yes, in most cases. Mi Cloud and local backups can restore to a different Xiaomi or Redmi model as long as both run the same major HyperOS or MIUI version. Contacts, SMS messages, app data, and call logs restore without issues in our testing. Some home screen layouts and system-level customizations may not carry over perfectly between different hardware models.

#How long do Mi Cloud backups last?

Mi Cloud stores three snapshots with no fixed expiration date. Xiaomi may delete data on accounts inactive for 180 or more days. If you need to pause using a device, run a manual backup and download a copy to your computer first.

#Does Xiaomi backup save WhatsApp messages?

No. Standard Mi Cloud and local backups don’t include WhatsApp’s encrypted chat database. WhatsApp manages its own backup through Google Drive; Mi Cloud has no visibility into it.

Before switching phones or doing a factory reset, open WhatsApp, go to Settings > Chats > Chat Backup, and tap Back Up Now. Verify you see a successful backup timestamp before proceeding. Without this step, you’ll lose your entire chat history.

#Do I need Wi-Fi to restore from Mi Cloud?

Yes. Mi Cloud restore downloads data from Xiaomi’s servers, so you need internet access. Use Wi-Fi for any restore over 2 GB — cellular will work, but can deplete your monthly plan and may throttle mid-restore.

Slow Wi-Fi significantly increases restore time. We measured 18 minutes on a 100 Mbps connection for a 2.1 GB backup.

#Will my Wi-Fi passwords restore from a Xiaomi backup?

Yes. Both local and Mi Cloud backups include saved Wi-Fi networks and passwords. They reconnect automatically after a restore. We verified this on HyperOS 1.0 and MIUI 14 — every saved network came back without re-entering passwords, including enterprise WPA2 networks that normally require manual setup.

#How much free storage does Mi Cloud include?

Five gigabytes. Paid upgrades cost $0.99/month for 50 GB and $2.99/month for 200 GB. For most users, the free tier handles contacts, SMS, and app data. Photos are the storage killer.

#Can I selectively restore just contacts without a full restore?

Yes, with local backups. Local backups let you pick individual categories during restore: contacts only, call logs only, or app data only. Mi Cloud restore applies all selected data types at once, so you can’t pull a single data type the way you can with a local backup file.