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Amazon Echo Dot (5th generation)
Best Budget Smart Speaker
Google Nest Mini (2nd generation)
Best Google Assistant speakers
Finding the best smart speakers can be a daunting task. There are many things to consider, such as which speakers sound the best, are easiest to set up, or are the most affordable. Smart speakers are a fun and convenient aspect of the smart home, whether you’re using these tiny hubs to set timers, make lists, or control other aspects of your home, such as lights or other routines.
This guide is designed to help you navigate your way through the many options when searching for the best smart speakers. It’s important to consider many of the key features of smart devices, including the ease of mounting multiple speakers and sound quality. This guide is backed by CNET’s years of research and testing on voice-controlled devices and smart speakers, from when they first emerged. Read on to learn about our favorite smart speakers and score some deals with the Prime Day sale. We’ve also compiled a list of the best Prime Day deals on Amazon devices (if that’s your preferred ecosystem).
What is the best smart speaker?
The Amazon Echo speaker is one of the most affordable and easy-to-set-up smart speakers out there. that’s why this Fourth generation Amazon Echo It is our overall selection of top smart speakers. It probably best meets the needs of most families. Although it’s a few years old, the device has improved sound quality over its predecessor, is compatible with a variety of smart devices, and is relatively affordable at $100 (although it can often be found for $80 or less).
The fourth-generation Echo might not be the best choice for your particular home. almost Every smart speaker Allows you to control lights, play music, ask questions, set reminders, and more with simple voice commands. The decision may just depend on which brand you’re already invested in.
For those who are platform neutral (or want to switch things up), besides the 4th generation Amazon Echo, our top picks are the 2nd generation Google Nest Mini, Amazon Echo Dot (5th generation), Apple HomePod Mini, and The new Sonos Era 100.
The best smart speakers of 2024
We give Amazon the smart home edge in the best smart speaker category, thanks to Alexa and the $100 fourth-generation Amazon Echo.
The latest Echo (not to be confused with the fifth-generation Echo Dot or Echo Pop) combines the usual Alexa smart features with a great-sounding speaker and has a built-in Zigbee radio. This is a great feature that allows you to connect Zigbee lights, locks, sensors, and other devices to your setup without the need for a separate hub device.
The Echo is even useful when you’re not around, since Alexa can send an alert if your smart speaker’s microphone detects the sound of breaking glass or a smoke alarm.
The Echo earns the No. 1 spot because of its sound quality: The speaker delivers loud, room-filling sound with plenty of clarity and bass control. While there are better-sounding speakers out there, such as the Sonos Era 100 and Echo Studio, none of them can match the price of the Echo.
Read our Amazon Echo (4th generation) review.
If you’re looking for a budget-friendly smart speaker, the feature-packed Amazon Echo Dot (5th generation) is the best choice among them. It offers a wealth of features, including a temperature sensor, Eero mesh extender, and the ability to click it like an alarm clock.
The Echo Dot (5th generation) also sounds better than other speakers in its price range, including the Echo Pop and Google’s Nest Mini, with plenty of sound clarity and decent bass content. Its microphone is sensitive enough to hear sounds from across the room, even when another speaker is playing.
While Google’s Nest Mini is slightly more sophisticated in terms of responsiveness, the Amazon Echo Dot is better in every other way and is the best smart speaker under $50.
Google is doing admirably in the smart speaker space, catching up with Amazon. At this point, it becomes difficult to choose between the two companies’ lowest-priced smart speaker devices.
Google Assistant now has nearly as many features as Alexa, and if you like Google Assistant, the $50 Google Nest Mini is a solid alternative to the Amazon Echo Dot. Plus, according to our tests, Google Assistant is slightly smarter than Alexa.
If you can’t remember the exact name of a smart home device, it can respond to voice commands more flexibly, and Google’s grouped commands (called routines) work with more types of smart devices than Amazon’s similar routines.
Google Assistant can recognize multiple voices, so if you each ask for the calendar, it will give you and your spouse different answers (although Alexa can now do that, too).
Overall, Google still has the smarts advantage, and the Google Nest Mini is a great, low-cost way to take advantage of that smarts.
Read our Google Nest Mini review.
Apple’s small, Siri-enabled smart speaker bridges the odd gap between $100 rivals like the Google Nest Audio and Amazon Echo and cheaper, small-package speakers like the Nest Mini and Echo Dot.
Features like intercom, audio switching, and stereo pairing make this small smart speaker very useful. It looks great and sounds great.
Speaking of smart homes, Siri and HomePod Mini are limited to devices that work with Apple’s smart home platform HomeKit.
There are fewer HomeKit-compatible devices than there are devices that support Alexa or Google Assistant.
If you like Apple (if Siri is your smart assistant of choice), or if HomeKit is your smart home platform of choice, then you’ll love Apple’s smart speakers.
For anyone who already uses an iPhone, Apple TV, or original HomePod, it makes sense to add this smart speaker to the lineup.
Read our Apple HomePod Mini review.
Replacing a Sonos One would be a tough job, but the company not only succeeded in making the Era 100 sound better, but also gave it more functionality.
In addition to Apple AirPlay 2 and Sonos’ own multi-room system, the Era 100 now has Bluetooth functionality, which brings it in line with the Roam and Move portable speakers.
The only downside to the Era 100 is that the speaker no longer offers a choice between Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa. While adding a Nest Mini seems to defeat the purpose of a speaker like this, it should solve this problem for people in the Google ecosystem. The issue is reportedly due to a change in Google’s rules, so perhaps Assistant can be added in the future.
Either way, the Era 100 sounds great, and Alexa fans especially should enjoy it.
Read our Sonos Era 100 review.
Other smart speaker options
The smart speakers above are our current favorites, but if you’re looking for specific audio performance, you still have plenty of other options. Read our breakdown Alexa vs. Google Assistant vs. Siri If you want to know the pros and cons of each device and decide on a smart home device based on its platform.
We’ve seen several new smart speakers in the past year or so (namely the Apple HomePod, Amazon Echo Pop, Sonos Era 100, and Era 300), but most models have been around for much longer. The Era 100 is the speaker of choice for these new speakers, and while the $40 Pop is interesting on its own, the Dot (fifth generation) offers more features for only $10 more.
If you like the idea of instant technology but want something more intuitive, check out our list Best Smart Display. A smart display essentially combines a smart speaker with a touch screen, so you can watch videos on YouTube, make video calls, scroll through pictures, and control your device smart family Touch gadget. Both Amazon and Google have several options worth considering in this category.
read more: The Best Smart Displays of 2024
Figure out what platform or features you want, and you should be able to quickly narrow down your choices and find the smart speaker that’s best for you and your family.
Smart Speaker FAQs
Do you have a stereo smart speaker?
Yes; nearly every Amazon Echo smart speaker can be stereo paired with another Echo speaker. The list is quite long, so check out Amazon’s Stereo Device Compatibility Page. You’ll find a list of speakers that can be paired with each other for stereo sound.
All of Google’s smart speakers can be paired in stereo, as long as they are the same model. Google’s Nest Audio speakers are a great choice for a stereo pairing, and two-packs of these speakers often come with discounts off the MSRP of $99 each.
You’ll be able to set up the speakers in the Google Home app and tell Google which speaker is on the right and which is on the left. Bass and treble settings can also be adjusted through the Home app.
Apple’s HomePod and HomePod Mini can be paired with the same speakers for left- and right-channel stereo listening. You can also pair HomePods with Apple TV to create a surround-sound movie theater. The smaller speaker won’t blow your mind, but it’s a nice extra feature.
If theater surround sound for your TV is your smart speaker’s top priority, we think Sonos offers the best audio quality. Two Sonos speakers (of the same model) can be paired in stereo, or you can trade them in for one of their select smart soundbars (Beam or Arc).
What is the smartest voice assistant?
The competition between Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa is fierce these days. Apple’s Siri also made the list, but held steady in third place in terms of reliability, knowledge and understanding of human requests.
Overall, we think Google Assistant’s strengths lie in its superior pacing, natural tone, and ability to consistently understand (and answer) questions and follow-up queries.
It’s close enough that you can safely invest in Google Assistant or Alexa based on other preferences like speaker style, devices, and compatibility with other popular smart home products.
Alexa is almost as good as Google Assistant, so no matter which assistant you choose, you can’t go wrong. You’ll learn its quirks and how to interact with your assistant to induce optimal responses and useful information.
Just for fun, we took a deep dive into each assistant’s “personality.”
Which smart speaker is the loudest?
In our tests of Apple, Amazon, and Google smart speakers, we thought the Amazon Echo Studio delivered the best results in terms of sheer volume. The Sonos Era 100 is a close second, with strong sound and our current pick for best sound quality. Especially if you are considering using the speakers as a stereo pair or as a theater system for watching TV.
Which smart speaker is best for playing free music?
Amazon smart speakers can play music from Pandora, Spotify and other popular music streaming platforms for free or with paid subscription levels. Additionally, if you have an Amazon Prime account, you can play music from the vast Prime Music catalog.
Google smart speakers have similar music streaming options, but Amazon requires a paid Prime subscription to listen to ad-free music through Prime Music, while Google offers a stripped-down YouTube Music subscription for free on its smart speakers.
