Basic Alexa Commands

Alexa can understand hundreds, if not thousands, of basic commands right out of the box!

Basic Alexa Commands

The real beauty of Alexa happens when she can just understand what you are saying without any specific configurations, and fortunately Alexa understands hundreds of commands right out of the box.

Below you will see a summary of the basic Alexa commands that you can try.

For the complete and updated list of Alexa commands, CLICK HERE!

 Alexa Control.

Use these commands to control Alexa’s payback, volume, mute, unmute, etc.

Alexa, help.
Alexa, mute/unmute.
Alexa, stop.
Alexa, set volume to [1-10].
Alexa, louder/softer.
Alexa, turn up/down the volume.

Music.

Use these commands to play and control your music.

Alexa, play [artist].
Alexa, play on Spotify.
Alexa, play [e.g. dinner] music.
Alexa, play [e.g. rock music for working].
Alexa, play [radio station] on TuneIn.
Alexa set a sleep timer for [e.g. 45 minutes].
Who sings the song [title]?
Alexa, what’s playing?
Alexa, shuffle mode on.
Alexa, shuffle mode off.
Alexa, pause.
Alexa, next.
Alexa, previous.

Alarms & Timers.

Use these commands to keep you on time!

Alexa, set an alarm for [time].
Alexa, set a repeating alarm for [weekdays at 7 a.m.].
Alexa, timer.
Alexa, set a timer for [15 minutes].
Alexa, set a [pizza] timer for [20 minutes].
Alexa, set a [second] timer for [5 minutes].
Alexa, how much time is left on the [pizza] timer?
Alexa, what are my timers?
Alexa, cancel the [pizza] timer.
Alexa, cancel the [15 minute timer].
Alexa, what time is it?
Alexa, what’s the date?
Alexa, when’s my next alarm?
Alexa, cancel my alarm for [2 p.m.] Alexa, snooze.
Alexa, when is [holiday] this year?

Calendar.

Use these commands to keep your days organized.

Alexa, what’s on the calendar [this weekend].
Alexa, create a new appointment.
Alexa, what’s on the schedule?

Lists & To-Do.

Here are some commands to keep you on task.

Alexa, add [go to the grocery store] to my to-do list.
Alexa, I need to make an appointment with [the doctor].
Alexa, create a to-do.
Alexa, add [item] to my shopping list.
Alexa, what’s on my shopping list?
Alexa, reminder.
Alexa, remind me to check the oven in [time].
Alexa, what are my reminders [this weekend]?
Alexa, what reminders do I have [tomorrow]?

Weather.

These commands will help to keep you warm and dry.

Alexa, what’s the weather like?
Alexa, will it rain today?
Alexa, will I need an umbrella today?
Alexa, what’s the weather going to be like [this weekend]?
Alexa, what’t the weather in [Vancouver]?

Traffic.

Use these commands to help you get around town.

Alexa, what’s my commute look like?
Alexa, what’s traffic like?

Math & Conversions.

Use these commands to help with math homework (ok, maybe not!).

Alexa, what’s [#] plus/minus/times/divided by [#]?
Alexa, what’s [#] to the power of [#]?
Alexa, [70] factorial.
Alexa, how many [units] are in [units]?
Alexa, how many [units] are in 2 [units]?

Language.

Here are some commands to impress your English teacher!

Alexa, what’s the definition of [word]?
Alexa, how do you spell [word]?
Alexa, what’s another word for [word]?
Alexa, what’s the opposite of [word]?

Sports.

Here are some commands to help you follow your team.

Alexa, what was the score of the [team] game?
Alexa, did the [team] win?
Alexa, when do the [team] play next?
Alexa, what are the [league] standings?

Search.

Use these commands to help you find out what you need to know!

Alexa, Wikipedia: [subject].
Alexa, tell me more.
Alexa, how tall is [person or object’s name]?
Alexa, how many people live in [place]?

Random & Fun.

Some commands to just have fun!

Alexa, give me an Easter egg.
Alexa, good morning.
Alexa, good night.
Alexa, tell me a joke.
Alexa, tell me [topic] joke.
Alexa, Simon says [phrase].

The Ultimate List of Alexa Commands

Click here to go to the Ultimate List!

List of resources mentioned in this episode:

• Alexa Commands: The Definitive List
• Alexa in Canada Community on Facebook
• Leave a review on iTunes

What is the Alexa in Canada Podcast?

Teri Fisher from the Alexa in Canada Blog reveals all of his top Amazon Alexa skills, strategies, news, power tips and tricks so you can be ahead of the curve with your personal virtual cloud-based assistant. Discover how you can get the most out of Alexa’s voice service so you can have the time and freedom to make your life more organized, relaxed, stress-free, entertaining, and fun! Although Teri confesses he does not have a complete Smart home (yet!), he uses Alexa to help him be more efficient in his daily life. Amazon Echo devices, smart home automation, flash briefings, voice recognition, natural language understanding, artificial intelligence (AI), getting things done, and everything that works (and doesn’t work) to help you better understand how to get Alexa working for you.

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