The best Alexa-compatible devices will give your home’s IQ a serious boost. Amazon’s smart assistant lets you use your voice to control certain models of smart lights, locks, speakers, TVs, and more connected to the Alexa smart home platform.
The Alexa app also makes it easy to command compatible devices without using your voice at all. Within it, you can tap on devices to control them or create ‘routines,’ which automatically trigger various smart home gadgets based on certain conditions. For example, you can have a motion sensor turn on lights when you enter a room. Spending the time to cook up efficient routine automations helps streamline your day and make your home more intuitive.
Best Alexa compatible Devices: Quick Menu
Once you know how to use Alexa to create routines, you can have the assistant automatically turn on your smart lights if it hears your smoke detector, or change the temperature on your thermostat when you leave or return home. Or maybe you just want to wind down before bed; you can use an Alexa-compatible device to turn off your lights and lock your doors as part of a nighttime routine.
There are hundreds of smart home devices that work with Alexa, and advertise as such on Amazon. And while all claim to be the best, most don’t hold water when put through their paces. We’ve done the testing for you to come up with this list of the best Alexa-compatible devices below.
The quick list
Amazon Fire TV Cube (2022) review
The best Alexa streaming device
This compact TV streaming box houses a powerful octa-core processor that quickly loads 4K app content and runs 3D games smoothly. It also doubles as an Alexa speaker. Not only does it let you control a cable box (or a live TV service if you cut the cord), but it’s also able to control your TV volume and inputs.
Wemo WiFi Smart Plug review
The best Alexa smart plug
Turn your existing “dumb” appliances smart by plugging them into the Wemo WiFi smart plug. This sleek device takes up minimal outlet space and features robust scheduling options. It fits right into the Alexa smart home platform
August Wi-Fi Smart Lock review
The best Alexa smart lock
This easy-to-install smart lock converts the inner half of your existing deadbolt. It has a wide variety of auto-lock and unlock features plus alerts you if your door is left ajar. You can manage it from the Alexa app to integrate into a whole home routine.
Ecobee SmartThermostat review
The best Alexa smart thermostat
With the Ecobee 5th generation smart thermostat, you get a built-in Alexa smart speaker so you can access all of the assistant’s features, including calling, messaging, and Drop-In. The new Ecobee also has a much better speaker and improved remote sensors.
Sonos Beam (Gen 2) review: The best-sounding soundbar for small TVs
The best Alexa soundbar
This second-gen Sonos Beam comes equipped with Alexa onboard. It brings a new CPU, tweaked profiles, more audio formats, and HDMI eArc support into the mix. The drivers have been re-tuned, resulting in a crisper central channel that emphasizes vocal clarity and dialog.
Philips Hue White Starter Kit review
The best Alexa smart lights
Virtually all smart lights work with Alexa, but Philips has the widest range of bulb types, and the Hue app lets you do far more with those lights than ones from other companies. They’re responsive and integrate easily into the Alexa app.
The best Alexa compatible devices you can buy today
Best streaming device
Amazon’s Fire TV Cube is the best Alexa compatible device for streaming. In fact, it features a new octa-core processor that makes it one of the best streaming devices on the market. In our testing, that improved speed has it neck and neck with the Roku Ultra (2020) and Apple TV 4K (2021). But this streaming device is more about its voice commands, as it’s also an Alexa speaker. Not only does it let you control a cable box (or a live TV service if you cut the cord), but it’s also able to control your TV volume and inputs.
This model also offers an HDMI-in port for those of us juggling all the devices, and puts a USB-A port and Ethernet inside as well, so no adapters are necessary for webcam connections or more stable streaming. That said, don’t expect Amazon’s new Super Resolution Upscaling feature to remaster your content, as it’s more about proving smaller upgrades to non-4K content.
Read our full Amazon Fire TV Cube (2022) review.
Best smart lights
There are a lot of smart lights that work with Alexa, but we think the best Alexa compatible devices in this category are the Philips Hue smart lights. That’s because Philips has the widest range of bulb types, and the Hue app lets you do far more with those lights than ones from other companies.
Philips sells several different types of smart lights, but the company’s basic Hue White Starter kit includes two bulbs as well as a small hub that links the lights to your Wi-Fi. From there, you can command Alexa to dim the lights, and the bulbs will respond. The bulbs in this kit don’t change color, though; for that, you’ll want the Philips Hue White and Color Ambiance A19 bulb starter kit. In fact, Philips makes a wide range of smart LEDs and light fixtures; check out our guide to Philips Hue lights to see what each does.
Read our full Philips Hue White LED Starter Kit review.
Best smart plug
The Wemo WiFi Smart Plug is one of the best Alexa compatible devices under $30 and our top choice among the best smart plugs. It’s more compact than competing options out there, even its predecessor the Wemo Mini. And while it doesn’t have energy monitoring like some other smart plugs, the Wemo WiFi Smart Plug does work with all the major smart assistants.
This smart plug has a physical switch, so if you don’t want to ask Alexa to turn your appliance on or off, you can click the switch on the Wemo. It also has a clever Away mode. which can make it seem like you’re home even when you’re not by turning a lamp on intermittently.
Read our full Wemo WiFi Smart Plug review.
Best smart lock
Ever lie awake at night trying to remember if you locked the front door? As one of the best Alexa compatible device, the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock can bring ease to your anxiety. Just ask Alexa if your door is locked, and it’ll tell you — and you can lock or unlock it using your voice. There wasn’t much to improve on in our August Smart Lock Pro review, but the company went ahead and tweaked its original to make it smaller and easier to use.
As our new top pick among the best smart locks, the the August Wi-Fi Smart Lock is 45 percent more compact than its predecessor, so it looks less obvious on your door. It also has Wi-Fi built in, so you can skip the August Connect bridge for linking your lock to your home network.
Read our full August Wi-Fi Smart Lock review.
Best smart thermostat
Ecobee’s 5th-generation smart thermostat makes our list of the best Alexa compatible devices because among other things, it has Alexa built in. So, if you want to interact with Amazon’s assistant, but don’t want to install a separate smart speaker, you can simply use this thermostat.
With the Ecobee 5th generation smart thermostat, you get all of Alexa’s features, including calling, messaging, and Drop-In. The new Ecobee also has a much better speaker and Spotify support, so it’s now ok—but not great—for playing tunes if you’re looking for a device to provide some background music. Most importantly, the new Ecobee has redesigned remote sensors that have much better range and battery life.
Read our full Ecobee 5 smart thermostat review
Best smart TV
The LG C3 OLED TV is the best Alexa compatible TV. Not only is it one of the best OLED TVs thanks to an impressive display panel, but a premium design, maximum versatility and great smart TV platform hit all the high marks, too.
What’s more, this C series lineup is LG’s largest in terms of size options — the configurations span from 42- to 83-inches, all of which sport full arrays of HDMI 2.1 ports. Most also feature LG’s evo OLED panel. Plus, with LG’s Web OS smart platform, that gives you flexibility if you want this TV to be the center of your Alexa-enabled smart home.
We can’t say our test results for this LG C3 OLED TV review showed significant improvement, but to be fair, there wasn’t much room to improve. Instead, what makes this one of the best TVs of the year is that it offers fantastic picture quality for the price — exactly what you’d expect from LG’s best-selling OLED TV series.
Read our full LG C3 OLED review.
Best soundbar
An upgrade to one of the best soundbars with Alexa built-in available, the second-gen Sonos Beam brings a new CPU, tweaked profiles, more audio formats, and HDMI eArc support into the mix. The drivers have been re-tuned, resulting in a crisper central channel that emphasizes vocal clarity and dialog. Dolby Atmos and other home-theater sound formats grant you numerous ways to experience wide 3D sound in your living room.
Other unique features like NFC for seamless setup, as well as TruePlay to curate sound to your space and optimal couch position, bring more value to this small speaker system. It also pairs perfectly with 55-inch (or smaller) HDTVs.
You should know that Sonos products don’t come cheap and the price tag on this beauty might be a bit steep for the average consumer. Those who can afford it will find this to be a welcome addition to their ecosystem of Sonos products.
Read our full Sonos Beam (Gen 2) review.
Best DIY home security kit
SimpliSafe is one of the best DIY home security systems because it’s a cinch to set up, has a ton of options when it comes to sensors and accessories—it even has its own smart lock—and offers optional professional monitoring for a reasonable price. But it’s also one of the best Alexa compatible devices because you can use Amazon’s assistant to arm your Simplisafe system as you walk out the door.
Simplisafe Essentials costs around $200, and comes with a base station, a keypad, three door/window sensors, and a motion detector; you can purchase additional sensors if you so choose. Simplisafe’s professional monitoring fees start at $15/month, but if you want features such as smart home connectivity with Alexa, August, and Google Assistant, the fee increases to $25 per month.
Read our full Simplisafe Essentials review.
How to pick the best Alexa compatible devices for you
Just about every smart home product works with Alexa, so knowing which are the best can be tricky. Things you’ll want to consider include the following:
Design: Is this a well-made product? In the case of a smart plug, for instance, is it slim enough so that it doesn’t block your other outlet?
Functionality: What features does the smart home device have? If it’s a smart plug or a smart light, does it have a Home/Away feature, and can you schedule it to turn on at sunset?
Price: Often, the cheapest smart home device is not the best. You may be tempted by a cheaper gadget, but make sure it meets your needs before buying it.
How we test the best Alexa compatible smart home devices
When reviewing any smart home device, we look at a few things before assigning it a rating:
- Ease of setup: How simple is the device to install?
- Features: What features does the device have relative to others in its price range?
- Performance: Does it actually work as advertised? Is its app easy to use, with a sensible layout?
- Price: How expensive is it when compared to similar devices? While this isn’t the most critical criteria, it is a factor in its final rating.
If you’re loyal to a single smart assistant platform, here are the best Google Home compatible devices, best HomeKit devices, and best smart displays.
