How to Move With Alexa

This article explains how to set up your Alexa device after moving to a new residence.

How to Set Up Your Alexa After Moving

Here's how to set up Alexa once you've moved into your new spot:

1. Connect your Alexa device to the Wi-Fi at your new location. This is basically the same process you went through when you first set up your Alexa device, but you have to manually force the device into setup mode. This is usually accomplished by pressing and holding the action button on your Echo.

   If you're unable to connect to your new Wi-Fi network, you may need to reset your Alexa, then set it up like a new device.

   Once your Alexa devices are set up to work with your new Wi-Fi network, you're ready to start using them. However, there are a few other settings you'll want to tweak to make sure everything runs smoothly.

   If you have several Alexa devices, and you have control over your new Wi-Fi network, consider setting up your new Wi-Fi network using the same SSID and password as your old network. Your Alexa devices will connect automatically, and you won't have to individually set up each.

2. Tell your Alexa your new address. Location-based commands, like asking Alexa for a quick weather report, rely on Alexa knowing where you are. When you first hook up your Alexa after moving, it will still think you're in your old location.

   To access information that's relevant to your new location, you have to change your address in the Alexa app for each of your Alexa devices.

   Open the Alexa app and tap Devices > Echo & Alexa > your echo device > Device Location. Enter your new address, then tap Save.

   You'll have to repeat this process for each of your Alexa devices.

3. Tell Alexa your new time zone. This is similar to telling Alexa your new address, but it's only relevant if you've moved a little further than across town or a few cities over. If you've actually moved to a new time zone, you'll need to tell Alexa, thereby enabling it to tell you the correct local time, among other things.

   Open the Alexa app, and tap Devices > Echo & Alexa > your echo device > Time Zone. Select your new time zone, then tap Change. Repeat this process for each of your Alexa devices.

4. Set up new smart home groups. There's a good chance your new home doesn't have the same layout as your old one, so you'll probably end up placing various Alexa and smart home devices in somewhat different locations.

   To get everything running smoothly again, you'll have to set up new smart home groups to reflect the way your devices are set up in your new home. For example, some of your old living room devices may now be in an office, a guest room, or elsewhere.

5. Make sure your Alexa devices are still named appropriately. In the same vein as fixing your smart home groups, you'll also want to change the names of any Alexa devices that are now in different locations. For example, if you have a device named "Office Echo," but it's now in your guest bedroom, you might want to rename it something like "Guest Echo."

   To rename an Alexa device, simply launch the Alexa app, tap Devices > Echo & Alexa, then tap the device you want to rename. Tap Edit Name on the next screen to change the name of the device.

   Naming your devices allows you to give commands like, "Alexa, play music on Office Echo," and have music start playing on that device, regardless of which device heard the command.

6. Reconfigure your flash briefing for your new location. Flash briefing is a feature that enables Alexa to provide you with a brief rundown of the current news. If you've previously set up this feature to provide you with local news, you may want to add sources for your new location.

   To reconfigure your flash briefing, tap Settings > Flash Briefing, swipe the toggles for any local news sources you're no longer interested in, then tap Add Content to find local news sources relevant to your new city or state.

7. Use family mode to connect other Alexa devices in the same home. If you're moving in with someone who also owns Alexa devices, mixing your devices in with theirs in the same home can have unwanted consequences. For example, if you have smart devices from your old house, their Alexa won't be able to control those devices.

   To set up and control all of your Alexa devices from your app, and to allow connectivity between each of your Alexas and smart devices, you need to connect your Amazon accounts using the household feature.

   The household feature also allows you to share Prime benefits and digital purchases like music, movies, and ebooks. If you need to separate your devices in the future, simply remove the other person from your Prime household in the future.