Alexa CLI
Use
alexacli
to control Amazon Echo devices and smart home via the unofficial Alexa API.
Authentication
# Browser login (recommended)
alexacli auth
Non-US accounts
alexacli auth --domain amazon.de
alexacli auth --domain amazon.co.uk
Check auth status
alexacli auth status
alexacli auth status --verify # validate token against API
Remove credentials
alexacli auth logout
Token is valid ~14 days. Configuration stored in
~/.alexa-cli/config.json
.
Devices
alexacli devices
alexacli devices --json
Text-to-Speech
# Speak on a specific device
alexacli speak "Hello world" -d "Kitchen Echo"
Announce to ALL devices
alexacli speak "Dinner is ready!" --announce
Device name matching is flexible
alexacli speak "Build complete" -d Kitchen
Voice Commands (Smart Home Control)
Send any command as if you spoke it to Alexa:
# Lights, switches, plugs
alexacli command "turn off the living room lights" -d Kitchen
alexacli command "dim the bedroom lights to 50 percent" -d Bedroom
Thermostats
alexacli command "set thermostat to 72 degrees" -d Bedroom
alexacli command "what's the temperature inside" -d Kitchen
Locks
alexacli command "lock the front door" -d Kitchen
Music
alexacli command "play jazz music" -d "Living Room"
alexacli command "stop" -d "Living Room"
Questions
alexacli command "what's the weather" -d Kitchen
Timers
alexacli command "set a timer for 10 minutes" -d Kitchen
Ask (Get Response Back)
Send a command and capture Alexa's text response:
alexacli ask "what's the thermostat set to" -d Kitchen
# Output: The thermostat is set to 68 degrees.
alexacli ask "what's on my calendar today" -d Kitchen --json
Alexa+ (LLM Conversations)
Interact with Amazon's LLM-powered assistant:
# Quick start - auto-selects conversation
alexacli askplus -d "Echo Show" "What's the capital of France?"
Multi-turn retains context
alexacli askplus -d "Echo Show" "What about Germany?"
List conversations
alexacli conversations
View conversation history
alexacli fragments "amzn1.conversation.xxx"
Audio Playback
Play MP3 audio through Echo devices:
alexacli play --url "https://example.com/audio.mp3" -d "Echo Show"
Requirements: MP3 at 48kbps, 22050Hz sample rate, HTTPS URL.
History
alexacli history
alexacli history --limit 5
alexacli history --json
Command Reference
| Command | Description |
|---|
alexacli devices
| List all Echo devices |
alexacli speak <text> -d <device>
| Text-to-speech on device |
alexacli speak <text> --announce
| Announce to all devices |
alexacli command <text> -d <device>
| Voice command (smart home, music, etc.) |
alexacli ask <text> -d <device>
| Send command, get response back |
alexacli conversations
| List Alexa+ conversation IDs |
alexacli fragments <id>
| View Alexa+ conversation history |
alexacli askplus -d <device> <text>
| Alexa+ LLM conversation |
alexacli play --url <url> -d <device>
| Play MP3 via SSML |
alexacli auth
| Browser login or manual token |
alexacli auth status [--verify]
| Show auth status |
alexacli auth logout
| Remove credentials |
alexacli history
| View recent voice activity |
Notes
- Uses Amazon's unofficial API (same as Alexa app)
- Refresh token valid ~14 days, re-run
alexacli auth
if expired
- Device names support partial, case-insensitive matching
- For AI/agentic use,
alexacli command
with natural language is preferred
- Add
--verbose
or -v
to any command for debug output
