What can I do with Alexa?

Amazon claims that Alexa can recognize 50,000 commands. So it doesn’t matter if you just got your Echo device, or you’ve had it for years, there are always new commands to learn about. If you are curious about which tasks you can automate with your voice-controlled assistant, here are some of the cool things you can do with Alexa voice commands:

Play music

Playing audio is one of Alexa’s core functions that is supported by Amazon Music.

You can ask Alexa to play a specific song, album or band by simply giving the command:

“Alexa, play ‘There, there’ by Radiohead,” or “Alexa, play Billy Eilish.”

Or, if you don’t know what you want to listen to, you can also ask Alexa to play songs centered around a certain mood or genre by asking:

“Alexa, play some jazz,” or “Alexa, play work out music.”

Fun fact: Alexa’s learning technology allows her to play the kind of music genre that you want.

If you want Alexa to learn your preferences faster, you can give Alexa the command:

“Alexa, play more like this,” or “Alexa, I don’t like this song.”

You can then control your playback with simple alexa commands that allow you to turn up the volume or skip a song. Here are some commands to use while playing music:

“Alexa, skip,” or “Alexa, turn the volume up/down.”

There are currently only 2 million songs on Amazon Music, so you might not be able to find the track you’re looking for. If you want to have a larger collection, you can splurge for Amazon Music Unlimited, which comes with 40 million songs. The service is ad-free and allows you to download and listen to your songs anywhere.

Other than Amazon Music, Alexa also supports Spotify, TuneIn, Deezer, and now Apple Music.

Set reminders and alarms

If you have a busy schedule, you can ask Alexa to remind you of your tasks. You can ask:

“Alexa, remind me of my dentist’s appointment tomorrow at 5:00.”

If you want to know what reminders you have upcoming, you can ask:

“Alexa, what are my reminders this weekend?”

In the event that you need to reschedule, you can give a command like this:

“Alexa, move my meeting from 1:00 to 3:00.”

Add to Your Calendar

If you want your Echo devices to give you reminders, the easiest way is to link your calendar to Alexa. You can do this on the Alexa app, under Settings > Calendar & Email.

Once you have Alexa linked to your calendar, you can ask:

“Alexa, what’s on my calendar for tomorrow?”

Or you can create an event by giving the command:

“Alexa, add event to my calendar.”

Alexa will then ask you the time and place of the event.

Set an Alarm

You can also use Alexa as your alarm clock by asking

“Alexa, set an alarm for 7:00 AM.”

If you want to wake up to a certain song, you can ask:

“Alexa, wake me up to Happy by Pharrell at 8:00 AM.”

Make video and voice calls

Alexa app will allow you to do voice calls and video calls. You can make calls to someone in your contact list by asking:

“Alexa, call John.”

Or you can answer a phone call without picking up your phone by saying:

“Alexa, answer the call.”

You can also check your phone messages with the command:

“Alexa, play messages.”

If you have an Echo Show, you can also make video calls with the same commands

Use as an Intercom

If you’re tired of yelling up the stairs for the kids to come down to dinner, you can use your Echo devices as an intercom system. All you have to do is say:

“Alexa, drop in on the kids’ room,” or whatever name you gave the device.

In order to use this service, you have to connect all your Echo devices. If you have connected all your devices, you can even set up announcements that are sent to some or all devices in your home by saying:

“Alexa, announce it’s dinner time,” or “Alexa, tell everyone good night.”

Give updated information

Alexa can also be your hands-free search engine. You can ask about the weather, news, or sports reports.

If you want to know about the weather, you can ask:

“Alexa, what’s the weather like today?” or “Alexa, will I need an umbrella today?”

To get the top news stories from your favorite news source, you can ask:

“Alexa, what’s in the news?” or “Alexa, what’s my flash briefing.”

Didn’t watch the big game last night? Alexa can catch you up when you ask:

“Alexa, did the Giants win?” or “Alexa, give me my Sports Update.”

Control your Smart Home

Alexa also connects and controls all your smart home devices, as long as you connect them. Here are some of the smart devices that Alexa can control:

To control your smart TV, you can ask:

“Alexa, turn on my TV,” or “Alexa, watch The Sopranos on Amazon Prime.”

However, you have to connect your smart TV to Alexa before you can give certain commands.

To control your smart thermostat, you can ask:

“Alexa, lower the temperature 1 degree,” or “Alexa, set the temperature to 73.”

Note: Not all smart devices work with Alexa, so make sure your devices are compatible before you buy them.

To control your smart lightbulbs, you can ask:

“Alexa, turn off the living room lights,” or “Alexa, dim the lights to 30 percent.”

If you have colored lights, you can ask:

“Alexa, make the living room lights blue,” or “Alexa, make the kitchen lights a little warmer.”

You can also set up a smart home routine, so you don’t have to say the same commands every day.

Recommend movies and TV shows

Don’t know what to watch on your smart TV? Alexa can recommend TV shows and movies that you can watch. If you have Fire TV and want to watch a movie with a certain actor, simply ask:

 “Alexa, show me titles with Robert De Niro on Fire TV.”

f you want more information on the movie you are watching, you can ask:

“Alexa, what is the IMDb rating for Psycho,” or “Alexa, who stars in the movie The Shining?”

Give cooking tips

If you don’t know what recipe you should be cooking, bring your Echo device into the kitchen and ask Alexa. You can get specific recipes by asking:

“Alexa, how do you make chocolate chip cookies?”

Or you can get wine suggestions to pair with the food you are giving the command:

“What wine goes well with shrimp?”

You can ask her to suggest what to cook, or she can be your hands-free assistant and read the recipes to you, so you don’t have to.

Make donations

You only need to say the amount and the charity. Alexa will do the rest. All you have to do is say “Alexa, make a donation to…” 

Help you get fit

Alexa can connect to your FitBit to give you information on your workout routine. Once you have connected Alexa to your FitBit, you can ask:

“Alexa, how many steps did I take yesterday?” or “How well did I sleep last night?”

Get Some Sleep

Alexa can help you get some shut-eye by playing soothing noises, such as white noise or ocean sounds. Simply give the command:

“Alexa, start White Noise,” or “Alexa, start Ocean Sounds.”

Tune your guitar

When your electric or acoustic guitar is out of tune, you can command Alexa to ask the guitar tuner to help tune your guitar.

“Alexa, ask Guitar Tuner to tune my guitar.”

Alexa will play each string four times before moving on to the next string.

Play Games

If you like Alex Trebek, you’re going to love this feature. All you have to do is say the command:

“Alexa, open Jeopardy!”

And the theme music from Jeopardy will start playing. Then Alex Trebek will introduce the game to you before Alexa takes over.

You can also play a ‘Name That Tune’ game by asking: 

“Alexa, start Song Quiz.”

Warning: While these games are free to play, some of them have ads, while others are fermium apps, which means that you will have to pay for extra features.

Tell jokes

When you’re in a sour mood, you can ask Alexa to tell jokes. All you have to do is ask:

“Alexa, tell me a joke.”

Or, if you are looking for a specific joke, you can ask:

“Alexa, tell me a Christmas joke,” or “Alexa, tell me a Star Wars Joke.”

Alexa knows tons of jokes, so start asking her to tell jokes about your favorite subject. Warning: Alexa’s jokes can be quite cringe-worthy.

Get First Aid Help

Is there a doctor in the house? Now Alexa can help you if something bad happens. Just ask:

“Alexa, open Mayo Clinic First Aid.”

Then Alexa will ask you what your condition is. Once she understands what is wrong, she will tell you how to treat your affliction. But be warned, she will go fast, so if you need to hear anything again, simply ask:

“Alexa, repeat.”

Test your language skills

Learning a new language with Alexa would be great. You have to say the word and let Alexa translate.

“Alexa, open Rosetta Stone.”

Then choose your language. Alexa allows you to learn Spanish, French, Italian, Portuguese, German, Japanese, or Russian. Don’t worry; the normal Alexa voice is replaced by native speakers. You start by repeating phrases, but Alexa

Find your phone

Finding your phone would be a lot easier using your voice. You can command

"Alexa, open Phone Finder and search for my phone"
"Alexa, ask Phone Finder to find my device"

Add a new device:
"Alexa, open Phone Finder and add a new device"

Finding Skills

To find out what other cool things Alexa can do, all you have to do is ask her:

“Alexa, what things can I try?”

She will start telling you the most popular and useful commands that you can give her.

You can also find all the skills that Alexa has by visiting alexa.amazon.com or asking her:

“Alexa, what are your most popular skills?”

Alexa is a great voice-controlled assistant. She can do a lot of things that make your everyday life easier. Transforming your house into a smart home can be made even more comfortable with the help of Alexa and other voice assistants.