The Best Amazon Echo Smart Speakers of 2022

The 5th-generation Amazon Echo Dot received a significant boost when it comes to sound. It produces more bass, and displays more proficiency in reproducing tracks that lean heavily into those lower frequencies than the previous generation. To be clear, the Dot won’t rattle windows or shake picture frames off their hooks. But for a speaker that weighs less than 11 ounces, the Dot does a surprisingly good job of bringing the bass.

The new Echo Dot now doubles as a Wi-Fi extender for eero Mesh Wi-Fi systems, and is now reportedly capable of adding up to 1,000 square feet of coverage to your network and handling speeds of up to 100 Mbps. For eero owners, the Dot represents a useful, 2-for-1 gadget that can set timers and tell you the right way to pronounce “biopic” while providing a handy boost to your network.

Aside from the extender skills, the Dot’s new accelerometer offers up new tap gesture controls. Simply tap the top of the speaker to pause or play music, snooze alarms, or even end communications through the Dot.

Unfortunately, not all of the Dot’s new features hit the mark. The speaker’s new ambient temperature sensor, while intriguing, measured about 9°F to 10°F colder than the real temperature of the space. Still, that’s a rather minor issue compared to the rest of the lineup of solid, noteworthy features packed into Amazon’s latest Alexa-enabled smart speaker. Add in the bump in bass and audio quality overall, and the fifth generation Echo Dot has plenty of perks to once again be one of the most valuable smart speakers around.

The fifth-gen Echo Dot also comes in additional models like the Echo Dot with Clock and the Echo Dot Kids Edition.

Read our full review of the Echo Dot (5th gen)

The 4th-generation Amazon Echo Dot comes in three models: The Dot, the Dot with Clock, and the Dot Kids Edition.

The Amazon Echo Dot with Clock has a numerical display on the front that shows the time or the status of timers you've set. The Kids Edition is covered in fun animal designs and comes with a free year of Amazon Kids+ programming and a 2-year guarantee (because kids aren't easy on tech!).

Amazon Echo Dot smart speakers have always had a sleek aesthetic. But the orb-like design of the 4th generation is as minimal as it gets, matching with the larger 4th-gen Echo. The Dot looks like a small mesh ball, and with three color options, it will blend nicely with most décor. If you’re wondering how much Echo Dots are, they are usually the most affordable of the current available Echo speakers.

While you can't expect mind-blowing sound from a speaker barely larger than a baseball, the Dot gives a surprisingly decent listening experience. It especially works well when linked with another Dot as a stereo pair. Playing bass-heavy tunes makes for a somewhat disappointing experience, but acoustic tracks sound pretty respectable.

Larger, more expensive Alexa smart speakers like the Echo Studio will deliver far superior sound quality, but the Dot is certainly sufficient for smart home control, Alexa interactions, and background tunes at dinner.

Read our full review of the Echo Dot (4th gen)

If you’re looking for the best sound quality in the Echo lineup, the Echo Studio is absolutely the best pick. It's also a great choice for smart homes because, like the 4th-gen Echo, it has a built-in Zigbee hub.

This speaker is considerably larger than other Echo speakers, but the additional size allows for deeper bass, better clarity, and immersive sound. The Studio is also unique in this space as it is designed to deliver 3D sound, thanks to its Dolby Atmos compatibility. It even features an upward-firing driver that bounces sound off your ceiling to better immerse you in the audio.

Usually, we think of surround sound in reference to movies. But there is a burgeoning movement in music to use 3D-audio technology like that in the Echo Studio to deliver sound that seems to come from everywhere–even above you. At present it's limited to a small list of artists and streaming services, such as Amazon Music Unlimited and Tidal, but it’s becoming more widespread.

Regardless of whether or not you use this speaker to play 3D music, the sound it delivers will be satisfying, and impressively full for a speaker of its size.

The 3rd-gen Dot may be an older model Echo speaker, but it still gives you access to all the standard Alexa features at a fraction of the price of its larger siblings. However, with the price break, you do have to sacrifice sound quality.

The small speaker delivers noticeably low-quality audio playback, though this generation presents a major improvement in that area over its predecessors. Like the Echo Dot, the third-gen has a 3.5mm input on the back and Bluetooth connectivity, so you can easily connect it to any existing speaker for a boost in audio quality.

Given that the price difference between the two speakers is nominal, the 4th-gen Echo Dot is a better buy (if you can swing the small price increase). The only reason to buy the 3rd-gen Echo Dot is if you prefer the hockey puck-like shape to the fourth-gen Echo Dot’s revamped orb design.