This practice is becoming so common that a world of virtual assistants has opened up. Instead of tapping an app to play your music, then another app to put on your lights, and yet another to turn down the thermostat, you can just do all that from a single home hub.
That’s why we’re going to tell you about some helpful Alexa commands that you might not know exist.
Helpful Alexa commands
Basic commands
Alexa, helpAlexa, muteAlexa, unmuteAlexa, stopAlexa, turn up/down the volumeAlexa, go to sleep
Alarm clock and calendar
Alexa, what time is it?Alexa, what’s the date?Alexa, set an alarm for 6 a.m.Alexa, snoozeAlexa, set a repeating alarm for 6 a.m. weekdaysAlexa, when’s my next alarm?Alexa, cancel my alarm for 8 a.m.Alexa, cancel all alarmsAlexa, set a timer for 30 minutesAlexa, set a second timer for 10 minutesAlexa, add an event to my calendarAlexa, what’s on my calendar for today?
Flash Briefings
A Flash Briefing is a quick overview of news and other content that you can discover and enable in the Skills section of the Alexa app. Alexa reads text or plays audio content provided by each enabled skill. Flash Briefing’s typically become a regular part of your day.
Alexa, give me my Flash BriefingAlexa, what’s in the news?Alexa, open USA Today (Go ahead, ask her to find my articles, Kim Komando in the Tech section, too )Alexa, nextAlexa, previousAlexa, pause
Local and traffic information
Alexa, how is traffic?Alexa, what’s my commute like?Alexa, what restaurants are nearby?Alexa, what are the hours for the grocery store?Alexa, is the pharmacy open?Alexa, what time is the movie, “Rogue One” playing?
Weather
Alexa, what’s the temperature?Alexa, will it snow tomorrow?Alexa, what’s the forecast for this weekend?Alexa, what’s the weather in Seattle?Alexa, what will the weather be like in New York tomorrow?Alexa, is it going to rain today?Alexa, what’s the extended forecast for Las Vegas?
Smart home commands
Alexa, discover my smart home devicesAlexa, connect to my phoneAlexa, Bluetooth – this will pair a Bluetooth gadgetAlexa, turn on the lightsAlexa, turn on the TVAlexa, raise the temperature 5 degreesAlexa, set the temperature to 75Alexa, lock my front doorAlexa, tell Geneva to preheat my oven to 350 degrees – You can control GE appliances with the Geneva skill
Music commands
Alexa, play my Oldies playlistAlexa, play the Top Pop stationAlexa, what’s playing?Alexa, what’s this song?Alexa, play music by ElvisAlexa, play the top songs this weekAlexa, turn it up/downAlexa, stop the musicAlexa, resumeAlexa, shuffle my new musicAlexa, play the Frank Sinatra station on PandoraAlexa, add this song to my Prime Music libraryAlexa, play some bluesAlexa, shop for new music by Ed SheeranAlexa, what’s popular from U2?Alexa, play samples by Louis ArmstrongAlexa, buy Nevermind by Nirvana
Alexa, order laundry detergentAlexa, buy bathroom tissueAlexa, reorder toothpasteAlexa, add protein bars to my cartAlexa, track my orderAlexa, where’s my stuff?Alexa, order an Echo Dot
To-do lists
Alexa, create a to-do listAlexa, I need to make a doctor appointmentAlexa, I need to wash clothesAlexa, add milk to my shopping listAlexa, put get an oil change on my to-do list
