The Edit — Smart Home
Alexa+ Explained: What Changes on an Echo
Alexa+ is a new assistant on the Echo you already own, built on large language models. It is free with Prime, and it remembers, plans and books things the old Alexa could only answer about.
This guide is research-led: we have not handled these units ourselves. If you buy through our links we may earn a commission — it never changes a pick. How we choose
This page reads the Alexa+ announcements published between February 2025 and September 2026 and sets out what changes for an owner, as How we choose describes. Nothing here was handled or tested, and Alexa+ itself was not used.
Amazon Echo Dot (newest model)
Good fit A first Echo, or one more room
Not for Anyone who wants to see answers on a screen
Amazon Echo Spot (newest model)
Good fit Morning routines at the bedside
Not for Reading recipes or watching video
Amazon Echo Show 5 (newest model)
Good fit Seeing a calendar or a timer at a glance
Not for Anyone impatient with a slow response
Alexa+ is free with Prime, and $19.99 a month without
Prime members get the full Alexa+ at no extra cost, for the whole household, on every Alexa device, at Alexa.com and in the app. Without Prime, Amazon lists 2 routes on 1 September 2026: a free text chat with limited use, or the full service at $19.99 a month. For most Echo owners, that makes the subscription a reason to keep Prime rather than a separate bill.
It is a new assistant on the same Echo
Alexa+ runs on an entirely new architecture built on large language models from Amazon Nova and Anthropic, according to Amazon’s 1 September post. The practical change is memory: a conversation can carry on over days, so a follow-up question does not need the whole request repeated. Amazon says people who switched use it more than twice as much as the Alexa they had.
The hardware does not change. Amazon counts over 600 million Alexa devices, and the 3 Echos below all carry “Designed for Alexa+” in their listing titles.
It books and plans, where the old Alexa answered
Amazon lists tasks the old Alexa could not finish on its own: ordering takeout, finding a restaurant and making a reservation, booking a ride and scheduling home repairs. It can also add a school schedule to the family calendar from an email you forward, and watch Ring camera footage for unusual patterns. Ring features need their own subscription, Amazon notes.
On Fire TV, it reasons about what you watch
Amazon’s 30 September 2026 post adds an Alexa+ hub to Fire TV, with suggested questions and threaded conversations you can scroll back through. Search now reasons across your subscriptions, watch history and current events, and Amazon’s example is a request for Emmy-nominated shows that were snubbed. The Fire TV phone app gains Alexa+ too: share an article or a photo, and it suggests titles and where to stream them.
Streaming sticks compared ranks the Fire TV sticks it runs on.
The Echo Dot is the cheapest way in
Amazon Echo Dot (newest model)
200,395 ratings at 4.7, the best-rated Echo, with owners praising its sound for the size and its simple setup.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Speaker |
|---|---|
| Sensors | Motion and indoor temperature |
| Assistant | Designed for Alexa+ |
200,395 ratings at 4.7, the best-rated Echo. Owners praise sound well beyond its size, an easy app and good value. Some report music stopping at random and dropped Wi-Fi. The listing names motion and temperature sensors, which give Alexa+ routines something to act on.
Buy it if
- A first Echo, or one more room
Don't buy it if
- Anyone who wants to see answers on a screen
Amazon Echo Spot (newest model)
46,071 ratings at 4.5, a smart alarm clock with a small display, liked for its size and sound.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Smart alarm clock |
|---|---|
| Display | Clock, weather and song titles |
| Assistant | Designed for Alexa+ |
46,071 ratings at 4.5. Owners call it a fine alarm clock for a nightstand, with good sound for the size, though some find the screen small. It suits an Alexa+ morning routine that wakes you with music and gradual light, as the listing describes.
Buy it if
- Morning routines at the bedside
Don't buy it if
- Reading recipes or watching video
Amazon Echo Show 5 (newest model)
72,580 ratings at 4.2, a small screen owners like the look of, with recurring reports of slow responses and crashes.
Current price shown on Amazon. We may earn a commission.
| Type | Smart display |
|---|---|
| Assistant | Designed for Alexa+ |
72,580 ratings at 4.2, the lowest of the 3. Owners like how it looks and think it worth the money, but slow responses, weak sound and crashes recur in their reports. A screen helps with a calendar or a recipe, yet a slow Echo makes a smarter assistant feel slower.
Buy it if
- Seeing a calendar or a timer at a glance
Don't buy it if
- Anyone impatient with a slow response
Smart speakers compared ranks every Echo against Sonos and Google Nest. For a child’s story player that needs no voice assistant at all, Toniebox or Yoto compares the 2 screen-free systems.