8 Best Alexa Speakers and Amazon Echo Devices We’ve Tested (2025)

1 month ago

Comparing Our Favorite Alexa Speakers

Other Alexa (or Alexa-Compatible) Speakers

There are a batch of Echo devices retired there, and immoderate third-party speakers that are Amazon Alexa–compatible. Here's each Alexa smart speaker we've tried and what we thought of it.

Amazon Echo Pop for $40: The Echo Pop is simply a perfectly good small speaker, and nan cutest 1 successful Amazon's lineup. Does it person awesome sound? No. It's good capable for inheritance tunes aliases if you're constricted to a dorm room, but you'll get overmuch amended sound for a akin size from nan Echo Dot (but you'll salary a small more, and you won't get arsenic tiny of colors!)

Amazon Echo Show 5 (3rd Gen) for $90: This smart show is different just-fine option, but it's excessively mini to beryllium a awesome display, and nan included camera makes it a nary for a bedside table; amended to spell pinch nan supra Echo Spot aliases an Echo Dot.

Amazon Echo Show 10 (3rd Gen) for $250: This smart show has large sound, but its wonky style makes it difficult to seamlessly fresh into your home. It's cool that it tin travel you astir while you speak to it, but besides kinda weird. It's awesome if you person a large room land you're ever moving around, but not overmuch else. It's been retired of banal for a while now, though, truthful we're keeping an oculus to spot if it's discontinued.

Amazon Echo Show 15 (2nd Gen) for $300: This smart show is simply a bully display, but it intelligibly wants to double arsenic a TV and isn't very bully astatine it yet. I'm hoping we spot amended TV-related capacity successful nan early to make it worthy adding to a room aliases office. It does a awesome occupation pinch widgets, though, acknowledgment to nan monolithic 15.6-inch screen. There's besides nan larger Echo Show 21 ($400), which is fundamentally nan aforesaid point but larger.

Amazon Echo Studio for $200: The Echo Studio is our favourite Alexa speaker for euphony and sound quality, but readiness has been limited—it was only successful banal for a fewer days of July, and is retired of banal arsenic of September 2025. Amazon did not corroborate really dependable its readiness will beryllium erstwhile asked.

Amazon Echo Sub for $130: This subwoofer was our apical prime for bass, which tin beryllium paired pinch different Echo speakers to adhd immoderate bass to your jam sessions. It's presently unavailable connected Amazon but still astir for third-party retailers for illustration Best Buy, and we're keeping a oculus retired to spot if it comes backmost successful banal aliases not. Amazon did not corroborate whether aliases not it would erstwhile asked.

Bang & Olufsen Beosound A1 (2nd Gen) for $269: The Beosound A1 is simply a durable, beautiful, and great-sounding listening companion, and this second-generation type has an Alexa integration to make it an Alexa speaker anyplace you go. It's a awesome speaker, but it's much costly than nan Sonos Roam.

JBL Authentics 200 for $380: This JBL smart speaker speaks some Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa, letting you divided betwixt nan 2 for different tasks without having to move your penchant successful nan app. That makes this speaker peculiarly appealing for folks pinch a sprawling postulation of smart products from both.

Other Devices With Alexa Inside

Why only inquire Alexa for thief while you're astatine home? These accessories fto you return your favourite sound adjunct pinch you everywhere.

Echo Frames (3rd Gen) for $330: WIRED reviewer Adrienne So was afloat prepared to dislike these combo eyeglasses and headphones, but she really liked them a lot. They look good, they're amazingly comfortable, and nan sound is OK—although a small tinny, since nan speakers are placed conscionable adjacent to your ears. You tin reply calls while moving and going for walks, and nan microphone is bully capable that she sounded for illustration she was still connected her phone. But nan charging guidelines is annoying. The glasses' arms don't rather fresh into nan stand, and you person to beryllium observant to equilibrium nan frames astatine 2 points.

Echo Buds (2023 Release) for $50: We preferred nan 2021 merchandise of these earbuds, but they're nary longer available. The 2023 version is cheaper, overmuch uglier, and does not person ANC.

Meet Alexa+

Photograph: Nena Farrell

Amazon has started rolling retired nan new and improved Amazon Alexa, named Alexa+. It's disposable correct now for free successful early access, though you'll person to subordinate a waiting database and hold to get selected. I sewage to cheque retired Alexa+ connected my Echo Show devices (which are nan only devices you tin usage Alexa+ connected during early access), and it's been a beautiful affirmative experience. I for illustration nan updated, much conversational voice, and Alexa+ did a bully occupation answering each kinds of questions quickly and thoughtfully. Check retired our early entree hands-on for everything I thought while testing.

Alexa+ has caused immoderate changes, moreover for those not utilizing it. It requires that all sound recordings beryllium sent to Amazon to beryllium processed. Amazon has changed its features wholesale—now each recordings pinch regular Alexa spell to Amazon too. There utilized to beryllium a “Do Not Send Voice Recordings” privateness characteristic that you could prime to person sound requests processed locally, but that characteristic was killed connected March 28, 2025, per an email Amazon sent retired to existent users of that feature.

There isn't a timeline for erstwhile early entree will beryllium done and nan last type will rotation out. Once retired of early access, Alexa+ will beryllium disposable for $20 a month, aliases free if you person an Amazon Prime membership. While you apt person a rank if you added an Alexa instrumentality to your home, it's a large jump from nan antecedently free assistant. Still, it's a bully upgrade and overmuch much connected par pinch nan AI assistants of nan world, which isn't a astonishment since it's built connected generative AI.

FAQs

What's nan Difference Between an Echo and an Echo Show?

A regular Echo is simply a smart speaker, aliases a speaker pinch microphones successful it truthful it tin perceive you speak to it and respond. An Echo Show is simply a smart display, which has a surface and a camera to fto you make video calls, watercourse content, and spot your questions answered connected a screen. Both person akin capabilities erstwhile it comes to smart location control, answering questions, and playing music, but Echo Shows person other abilities acknowledgment to nan screen. All Echo Shows person a camera and travel pinch a beingness camera screen for privacy.

When’s nan Best Time to Buy an Echo?

The champion clip to bargain immoderate Amazon speaker is during a awesome waste arena for illustration Black Friday aliases Amazon Prime Day, erstwhile location are often steep discounts. You'll often spot nan cheaper speakers discounted for astir 50 percent off, and nan larger speakers spot immoderate bully waste prices too.

How and Where Should You Set Up Your Alexa?

Alexa speakers get nan champion usage successful spaces you're successful often. I for illustration mounting excavation up successful my room and surviving room—usually a show successful nan kitchen, truthful I tin propulsion up a look aliases nan upwind while I make my greeting cup of tea, and a speaker successful nan surviving room truthful I tin play euphony and bid nan lights without a surface to distract from nan TV aliases playing pinch my son. You tin besides group 1 up successful nan chamber to usage arsenic an siren clock, but make judge it's a exemplary without a camera for nan champion privacy.

Ultimately, what's astir important is that nan speaker is location it tin perceive your commands. Where that will beryllium will alteration based connected your home, but deliberation astir wherever you'll beryllium erstwhile you inquire for nan upwind aliases to dim nan lights, and spot your speaker accordingly.

You'll group up Alexa speakers utilizing nan Alexa app, which allows you to negociate aggregate Alexa speakers if you ain much than 1 done your Amazon account. Third-party speaker setup methods whitethorn vary.

Is Alexa Always Listening?

Alexa is ever listening, to a definite extent. It's designed to only perceive for its aftermath word, and shouldn't beryllium signaling aliases processing immoderate audio unless it hears that word. But Alexa tin sometimes mishear a connection and think it's nan aftermath word, aliases perceive a connection akin capable to activate nan speaker. If you've owned an Alexa, there's apt been times that nan adjunct abruptly responds erstwhile you weren't speaking to it. Once it hears nan aftermath connection (or what it believes to beryllium is nan aftermath word) it will commencement listening to everything successful an effort to perceive what you request and respond.

Alexa+, nan latest type of Alexa, will besides stay connected for a small spot aft you inquire a mobility to perceive for follow-up questions, nary aftermath connection required. Both Alexa and Alexa+ ray up successful immoderate manner (regular speakers will move nan ray ringing blue, while nan displays will person a bluish barroom look connected nan screen) to fto you cognize nan adjunct is listening. Most Echo devices besides person a beingness shut up button, and will show a reddish ray aliases reddish barroom to fto you cognize erstwhile nan shut up is activated.

How Do You Remove Ads and Spam From an Echo Show?

If you're utilizing an Echo Show device, you've apt noticed there's tons of default contented nan instrumentality will show you. Sports scores! Local news! A look you mightiness beryllium willing in! It makes nan instrumentality exhausting and annoying to beryllium near.

Here's really you tin power what you see:

Swipe down from nan apical of your Echo Show to propulsion up nan menu, and prime Settings.
In nan Settings menu, take Home Content.
There are upward of 40 options you tin toggle connected and disconnected connected this menu, and you should region arsenic galore arsenic you tin that you don't use. I usually region each but upwind forecasts and precocious played audio.

While you're capable to move disconnected interest-based ads from third-party skills (this is nether Alexa Privacy successful nan Settings menu), it won't extremity each ads. The only mounting that is ad-free is choosing Photo Display mode, which tin usage either Amazon's included room of photos aliases your own. The downside is that that turns it into a integer photograph frame, truthful you won't moreover spot a timepiece aliases features for illustration widgets.

Can I Have My Alexa Requests Locally Processed, aliases Do They Have to Go to nan Cloud?

There utilized to beryllium a privateness characteristic called Do Not Send Voice Recordings that fto you person each your sound requests processed locally connected your Alexa device, alternatively of being sent to Amazon's unreality storage. That characteristic was killed successful March 2025 to support Alexa+, and moreover if you proceed to usage nan aged Alexa, you don't person entree to that characteristic immoderate longer.

Alexa+ is still only successful early access, and you tin only get it by joining nan hold database and waiting to beryllium selected. It's random, and truthful acold Amazon doesn't person a timeline for erstwhile everyone connected nan database will get it aliases erstwhile early entree will beryllium over. You'll conscionable person to subordinate nan hold database and hold to spot erstwhile you're chosen. Once you do, cheque retired our hands-on for what we liked astir Alexa+ truthful far.

How Does WIRED Select Smart Speakers to Test? How Are These Speakers Tested?

For this guide, we specifically trial speakers that are compatible pinch Amazon Alexa. It's a large limitation and narrows down nan options significantly, particularly compared to speaker options you'll spot successful our different guides for illustration nan Best Bluetooth Speakers. That's chiefly Amazon's ain ecosystem of speakers, and while location are 3rd statement options, nan champion options thin to beryllium of Amazon's ain creation to activity pinch its ain sound assistant.

Each speaker gets installed successful a tester's location to trial for day-to-day use, arsenic good arsenic to spot really nan microphone performs, really nan speaker sounds pinch different types of music, really good nan smart location power features activity pinch compatible devices specified arsenic smart lights and video doorbells, and different features arsenic basal (e.g., streaming features connected smart displays).

How Does WIRED Get Models? What Does WIRED Do After Testing Them?

We get reappraisal units usually arsenic a property sample, though we will besides independently acquisition samples if request be. All reappraisal units successful this guideline were provided arsenic property samples pinch nary responsibility to screen aliases promises for what that sum would be.

After testing, we support astir of our picks either installed for semipermanent testing successful our homes, aliases successful retention to comparison against updated models and caller speakers that travel out. If nan sample becomes irrelevant aliases unnecessary to keep, we donate it locally.

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