We all have our favorite. But just in case you don’t, here are 11 of our favorite and best Amazon Alexa commands. These are the Alexa commands we always use. These are what we consider the best Alexa commands. Period. We also threw in some extras we wish we had along the way.
Alexa Commands You Should Know (And Use)
Aside from telling you the Alexa commands we think will be valuable in your home (or possibly a work setting), we also wanted to dish on how we really leverage the below commands to augment these digital assistants.
Alexa, Set a Timer…
Telling Alexa to set a timer is a versatile command. Use a timer for cooking. Use a timer to give your kids a deadline to perform a task. Use a timer to keep you on task. Use a timer to set a time limit for when someone has to be finished watching TV or playing a game. Use a timer to play a game. Use a timer to help with gaming management. This is one of those commands you will most likely use on a daily basis. Now, timers are everywhere (phones, microwaves, ovens, etc), but the convenience of using an Alexa-enabled device to perform the command is really simple.
Alexa, Broadcast
Easily turn your Alexa devices into an intercom system with this command. When we first were introduced to the Amazon Echos and had two of them, we used this command so much that we ended up buying a device for every room in the home. Another cool little trick with this is to connect other audio equipment such as a TV or a soundbar and you’ll also get another vehicle to use as a broadcast tool.
Alexa, Read My Notifications
This one comes in really handy when you want to snoop on what your spouse is getting you for your birthday or Christmas 😉 But…at the same time, your kids can also snoop on what you’re getting them as well (we’ve learned that the hard way). But having Alexa read you your notifications is so convenient. I love knowing when a package is out for delivery or when a package has been delivered. In the days where porch pirating is a thing, these little notifications are beneficial.
Alexa, Add _____ To My To-Do List
At first, there was a hesitation to use Alexa to help me put things on a To-Do list. It’s hard to break the pen and paper habit. And then I tried using my phone for a To-Do list (which is really nice as well). BUT…using this Alexa command for adding simple things (and even bigger things) is so handy and is a time-saver.
Alexa, Remind Me…
We have fun with this one as well. We’ll say, “Alexa, remind me tomorrow to never let my kids watch Netflix again.” They chuckle and giggle when I say it and laugh harder the next day when Alexa reminds me 😉 We also use this aside from having fun. It’s a great command to remind you to do tasks around the house or to remind you about an appointment, which leads us to…
Alexa, Add _____ To My Calendar
Okay, so it can be redundant to use “Alexa, remind me about my appointment” and “Alexa, Add my appointment to my calendar.” And there is a little bit of overlap from time to time with these two commands. But they are different. Most calendars have notifications enabled to remind you about them. But just like its remind-me-cousin, we love this command.
Alexa, Turn On My Lights OR Alexa, Dim The Lights To 30 percent In My Bedroom
This might be one of the top three Alexa commands used not just in our home, but in all homes. Depending on the smart home devices you have set up, you can even take this command a little further and ask Alexa to dim lights in a specific room. You are going to need a smart plug or smart bulbs to use this function as well. There are times in my mind when I do think, “I’m so lazy because I can turn the lights on and off with my voice and I don’t have to get out of bed”. But it’s more than doing something because we don’t want to do it. Leveraging this technology allows us to utilize our time more effectively. I don’t think I’ve ever sat down and really calculated how much time smart devices have saved me, but I know it’s a lot.
Alexa, Set The Temperature To 70 Degrees
We’ll preface this by saying you are going to need a smart thermostat to perform this function. We have our smart thermostat completely automated to change based on our preferences. We have a geofence set up so it knows when to optimize when we’re in the home too. But…there are those times when someone wants the temp to be a little cooler or a little warmer and we ask Alexa to help out. This is nice.
Read More: Digital Assistants – The Uninvited Guests
Alexa, Turn My TV Off
This is a go-to command. Not only is it a convenient one when you’re laying down (or can’t find the remote), it’s one of my favorites to use when the kids don’t do something I’ve asked them to do. After the third time asking, I just say, “Alexa, turn my TV off.” It’s always greeted with groans or some thwarted attempt to screw up the command before Alexa can interpret it. This is a great one for parents.
Alexa, Find My Phone
You’ll have to initially enable this skill (Find My Phone) by linking your number and confirming with a four-digit code. But once you get past the initial setup (which is extremely easy), this command works flawlessly. Very useful. You can also add contacts and call contacts with this Amazon Alexa skill.
Alexa, Roll a Die OR Alexa, Flip a Coin, OR Alexa, pick a number between 1 and 100
We use this command at least a few times a week. Usually, it’s to settle a dispute or a disagreement between two parties. We love this because it’s easy to use and is quick.
Alexa Commands We Wish Existed (Maybe They Do!)
In a perfect world, these are the commands we would use all the time! They don’t exist yet, but perhaps one day we’ll get to a point where the technology catches up to these Alexa command fantasies. We have hope these commands will one day come to fruition!
Alexa, Find My Remote
If you have a Bluetooth tracker, you theoretically could use this command. But…we just wish it was this easy without the extra Bluetooth tracking tech 😉 But realistically, if you have an Alexa-enabled smart TV, you can control your TV with your voice (or a command), which would render a remote somewhat useless. It’s interesting to think of controlling the TV this way. Perhaps, our remote controls will soon be a thing of the past…
Alexa, Shields…Red Alert!
This would raise your shields and load photon torpedoes and notify Starfleet that the Meredith home was engaged in a battle. OK not really, but using home automation could use to lock your doors, turn on your security system, and turn off your lights. I actually use the command “Secure the Batcave” to accomplish this, and the command a special command (I’m not going to share with you for obvious reasons) that I can say to turn on all the lights in the house and start recording on all cameras (inside and outside), for those times that I think I heard something in the middle of the night.
Alexa, Make Me Dinner
This is a no-brainer, right? Maybe this command could (will?) happen in the future. There already is a movement with 3D printed food, so it’s not far-fetched to think we’re really close to the point where we potentially are giving commands to our smart devices to make food.
Alexa, Do The Dishes
We’ll preface this by saying there are smart dishwashers on the market. And they do some pretty cool things by connecting to your smart home. But…they still haven’t figured out how to load up the dishes in the dishwasher yet 😉 But…I have found a patch with this wishful command, “Alexa, remind my son to do the dishes today at 5 PM.” It works about half the time, so the command is a little clunky. Needs more use, I guess.
Underground Alexa Command Hacks
Who knows what Alexa is capable of. These smart devices are like those old-school video games that have hidden cheat codes. You can even train Alexa to perform certain tasks. I bet there are hundreds and hundreds of “cheat code-like” prompts and actions Alexa can do that the public isn’t aware of. Here are a few of our “underground Alexa hacks”. We just call them “hacks” because we don’t see people use these as often and they are very useful.
Use And Master IFTTT
One of my favorite Alexa hacks is setting up an IFTTT recipe. Now, if you don’t know what that is, IFTTT stands for If This, Then That and you can assign certain actions based on event triggers. For example, I can set up a trigger to turn my lights on in a specific room in the house. You could also trigger the TV to go off when a timer ends (great for telling the kids they only have 10 minutes left to watch). Some of these recipes that are more customized can be a little difficult to set up, so we recommend starting out simple and building your skills over time. Once they’re set up, it’s simple, “Alexa trigger [IFTTT Recipe Name]” and you’re good to go.
Teach Alexa Your Voice
This is one that all too many times goes overlooked. We get it. You just unbox this really cool device and you’re in a hurry to use it and set it up. That prompt comes up to train Alexa to recognize your voice and you’re like “Skip that.” But…one of the most frustrating aspects of these cool little gadgets is when it can’t figure out what you’re saying. So, learn from our mistakes and train Alexa to your voice. On the app on your smartphone, hit Menu, then Settings, then Your Voice, and begin the routine.
Alexa, Repeat That
If I had a dime for every time I had to ask a question again to Alexa. Sometimes you just don’t understand the response and sometimes a competing noise interferes with Alexa’s response. Simply say, “Alexa, repeat that” and you’ll hear the same response again.
There Are So Many Possibilities
All you have to do is Google “Alexa commands” and you’ll see there are literally hundreds upon hundreds of commands you can utilize. The best thing about all of these Alexa commands is there are so many that there are definitely a dozen you could use to make life easier (and entertaining) for your home. Amazon also has what is called Alexa Skills. Alexa Skills is more than just downloading an app onto your smart device. Instead, you’re able to use voice commands and natural language processing capabilities that let you do things like order pizza or play music from Spotify (or Amazon Music).
Related Articles:
Basic Home Automation
Digital Assistants: The Uninvited Guests
Simple and Smart Appliances
