These Are the Best Smart Devices That Work With Amazon Alexa in 2025 (2025)

Best Alexa device overall (and best Alexa-compatible smart speaker)

Pros

• Improved sound quality and powerful bass
• Better smart home connectivity
• Easy and quality stereo pairing

Cons

• A bulky design
• No revolutionary upgrades from competition

Amazon's third-gen Echo Dot with Clock was our previous favorite Alexa speaker, but since the 2020 product line, the flagship fourth-generation Echo speaker has got the nod. At $100, the spheroidal speaker is more expensive than the $50 fourth-generation Amazon Echo Dot, although the improvements in sound quality and some intriguing smart home features justify the additional cost.

This smart device's shape sets Amazon's newer Echo speaker apart. Where the third-gen Echo offered a barely noticeable sound quality improvement over its predecessor, the ball-shaped fourth-gen version has noticeably better audio output, including respectable bass for a speaker in its price range.

On the smart home front, the fourth-gen Echo also gets a built-in Zigbee receiver, carrying over a feature from the now-defunct Amazon Echo Plus. The Zigbee receiver lets the new Echo function as a smart home connectivity point for compatible smart lights, plugs, and other Zigbee-based accessories. That means you can use the Echo itself as a hub to play music, among other things, without the need for an additional piece of hardware to get those devices online.

Best Alexa-compatible home security camera

Pros

• Affordable
• Works indoors and outside
• Uses rechargeable battery

Cons

• Does not support Apple HomeKit
• Some features require a subscription

The Ring Stick Up Cam Battery is a great camera for a lot of reasons, but thanks to its reasonable price and tight integration with Amazon Echo devices -- it's an easy pick here. Plus, because a rechargeable battery powers it, you can place it anywhere you want -- inside or out -- and not have to worry about a power outlet.

It comes with weatherproof housing, clear night vision, a 130-degree field of view, a loud siren and more. Thanks to that tight Amazon integration, if you have an Echo Show smart display, like the Echo Show 15, you can put a live view widget on the screen. You can also just ask Alexa to show the feed on the screen with a simple voice command as well.

Best Alexa-compatible smart display

Pros

• Solid sound quality, good screen resolution
• Price tag makes it one of the best midrange smart displays on the market
• Physical camera shutter

Cons

• The interface isn't as smooth or easy to use as on Google's Nest Hubs
• You can't call up YouTube videos by voice

In Amazon's Echo Show 8, you get an 8-inch screen with the best resolution of any Echo Show yet, a camera shutter and all the smarts of previous Amazon smart displays. The Echo Show 8 has a built-in Alexa speaker. That means you can use this smart display to ask your Alexa digital assistant to do your bidding, whether that be asking it to play music, relay the weather or just tell you a joke.

Since it's a smart display, it also offers advanced compatibility with Alexa-enabled security cameras. Ask Alexa to "answer the front door" when someone rings your Ring Peephole Cam and you can see the live feed on your Show 8 -- and actually talk to the person, straight from the smart display.

Best Alexa-compatible smart lock

Pros

• Small, sleek design
• Built-in Wi-Fi

Cons

• Expensive price
• Shorter battery life

August's Wi-Fi Smart Lock is a great smart lock. It retrofits to most standard deadbolts, so you don't have to deal with a complicated installation. The built-in Wi-Fi makes it possible to access and control your smart lock remotely via the Android or iOS app without needing an August Connect module. As its spot on this list indicates, it's an Alexa-compatible device, too -- that means you can lock and unlock your door from an Alexa-enabled smart speaker using your voice.

The lock also comes with an open/close sensor -- called DoorSense -- that attaches to the door in question. That way, the app not only tells you whether the door is locked or unlocked but also if the door is open or closed. That's a nice touch of functionality from such a straightforward smart lock.

Best Alexa-compatible smart thermostat

Pros

• Budget-friendly
• Seamless integration with Alexa app and voice commands
• Responsive touchscreen interface

Cons

• Doesn't work with Google Assistant or Apple HomeKit
• If you don't have a C-wire, requires C-wire adapter
• No remote temperature sensor

Amazon's $80 Smart Thermostat is hard to beat in terms of value, and that's at full price. For starters, the thermostat works as well with Alexa as you'd expect given that it's an Amazon product, so if you have an Echo speaker or Echo Show display, you should be in good shape to get the best value out of the device.

Even for those who don't, the thermostat offers a simple, straightforward design that looks great on a wall and feels great to use, and it could even save you as much as $50 per year with its energy-saving settings.

Best Alexa-compatible smart bulb

Pros

• Affordable
• Many smart home integration options
• Useful features like scenes, shortcuts and a vacation mode

Cons

• Doesn't dim as much as some competitors
• Doesn't support Siri voice controls via Apple HomeKit
• Limited app functionality

Wyze is well known for its super-cheap prices, and its Wi-Fi connected smart lightbulb is no different. If you're looking for a smart light that works with voice commands, this is the best Alexa-enabled one out there. A two-pack of standard, white-light bulbs can be had for just $17, but the fully color-changing versions only cost a few bucks more at $27 for a two-pack, which is worth it even if you'll only break those colors out on rare holiday occasions. Either way, you're getting a 2-pack of Alexa-compatible bulbs that connect directly to your home internet network via Wi-Fi. Screw them in, connect via the Wyze app and you're ready to go.

Colors aside, the Wyze bulbs have a great range of white light, from candlelight-like to daylight-white. Plus, despite the low price, they produce better brightness than many bulbs that sell for more.

Best Alexa-compatible DIY home security system

Pros

• Fantastic value
• Reliable security features
• Backup Wi-Fi, local processing and storage

Cons

• Setup instructions aren't always clear

While other DIY home security systems work well with Alexa, the Ring Alarm Pro offers excellent performance with unique built-in Alexa integrations. With the higher-end Ring Protect Plus subscription, you even get Alexa's security feature -- Guard Plus -- packaged in for free. That means Alexa will listen for glass breaking or footsteps while you're away and will alert you if it hears anything fishy.

Beyond its Alexa integrations, the Ring Alarm Plus offers fantastic features, like a built-in Wi-Fi 6 gateway, backup internet, local processing and storage (a first for Ring), cellular backup, professional monitoring and more. A fourteen-piece system costs $380, and subscriptions range from $4 per month to $20 per month -- the most expensive of which still undercuts some of the best competition. In short, this system is a fantastic value.

Best Alexa-compatible smart plug

Pros

• Keeps other outlets free
• Works with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa
• Offers plenty of scheduling and timing options

Cons

• Not compatible with Apple HomeKit

The TP-Link Kasa Smart Wi-Fi Plug Mini is a big name for a tiny smart plug that costs about $20.A smart plug like this one connects via your Wi-Fi connection directly to a wall outlet and converts your non-smart lamps, fans and other gadgets into smart devices.

Use the TP-Link app to connect and control devices -- or enlist Amazon Alexa and use voice control. Say, "Alexa, turn on the reading lamp" to get the Plug Mini smart plug to control the devices connected to it with ease.

Best smart home controller

Pros

• Affordable
• Easy to setup and use
• Many integrations
• Doubles as a smart display

Cons

• Camera live view limitations
• Speakers aren't very good

There aren't many smart home controllers available for the average smart home user to pick up and start using. The ones out there tend to be pricey and require a fair bit of know-how to set up. This is partially what makes the Amazon Echo Hub such a great device. For the full price of $180, the tablet-looking product may seem pricey compared to the Fire tablets Amazon offers -- until you realize the genius simplicity of the Echo Hub.

It's the software interface that makes using the Echo Hub so easy and intuitive. Amazon brought the smart home controls that are available on its smart displays to the smart home controller and made them better. With a customizable home screen, quick toggles, easy-to-understand buttons and more, the Amazon Echo Hub can do almost anything for your smart home.

I do wish the speakers were better and you could put more than just Ring cameras into the live widgets, but the Echo Hub is a great central location to control your smart home. Plus, it can also act like Amazon's Echo Show smart display and Echo smart speakers, too.