6 Best Smart Speakers (2025): Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri

there are many Smart speakers on the market and choosing the best smart speakers will become more and more powerful. First, you need to determine which voice assistant you prefer. There are three things to use: Alexa from Amasson, Google Assistant and Apple’s Siri from Apple, each with its pros and cons. This guide is organized by our preferred speaker, no matter which assistant it uses, but if you prefer other assistants, we recommend you to use a secondary option.

Overall, although we prefer Google’s ecosystem over Amazon’s smart speakers and Amazon-powered smart speakers. Amazon’s speaker lineup is even bigger, but our favorite model is still Google’s lineup, including Google Nest Audio ($75) For smart speakers (especially if you want stereo sound and two speakers for a high price) Google Nest Hub Max ($230) Used for smart display. Amazon makes our favorite smaller speakers, especially the fifth generation Amazon Echo Point ($50).

Check out our guide to the best Alexa speakers, the best Google speakers and the best smart display for more advice. If you are looking for more speaker suggestions, don’t miss our guide, which are the best Bluetooth speakers, the best speaker bars and the best Sonos speakers.

Updated June 2025: We have reorganized this guide and its options.

Our Favorite Smart Speakers

Overall, Google Assistant is our preferred smart speaker and assistant, so it’s no surprise that Nest Audio (8/10, Wired recommends) is our overall choice. It has a compact pillow-like shape and excellent sound to fill small and medium-sized rooms easily. We really like using two nests as stereo pairs because they combine to get some of the best audio quality in smart speakers for $200.

Like all Google Assistant – Eappriated devices, you can ask Nest Audio to set a timer, play music, or tell you the weather, and you can search for anything on Google. The Google Home app makes it easy for speakers to pair with any other Google-friendly smart device you have. Google’s ecosystem is generally easy to use and is easy to integrate into Google itself and other products in other products.

Connect to Google Assistant.

★If you like Alexa: The fourth generation Echo ($100) is Amazon for this device. It’s slightly shorter, but wider, with a circular design on the higher nest audio. It has excellent sound quality and great features, and is a great option if you like Alexa at home. Alexa has changed a bit, and there will be a new version of the Assistant to choose from soon – read more about Alexa+ in our section?

The best smart display

Provided by Google

I like smart displays because I like the option of using voice commands to control my smart home or to choose with my fingers. My favorite is the Nest Hub Max (8/10, wired recommendation) as it doubles as a gorgeous digital photo frame. Since I’m a Google Photos user, it’s amazing to show me all kinds of pictures, but even if you don’t actively back up Google photos like I do, it’s easy to create and add to the album to show up on a 10-inch screen.

The wheel hub is maximum and easy to use for smart home control, allowing you to adjust the light with a faucet or feed the doorbell directly into the device. It has a built-in hub so smart home devices can be connected to it for setup, and support is important on threading and Wi-Fi. Its speakers and profiles are also surprisingly solid, especially for casual listening sessions in the kitchen or setting the atmosphere during dungeons and dragons.

Connect to Google Assistant.

★If you like Alexa display: Amazon has a lot of crazy smart display counts, but my favorite is easy to name: the Echo Show 8 ($150). The 8-inch screen is enough for everything you can use, and includes a nice speaker and has built-in wheels with Zigbee, Matter and Thread. Unless you are a smart home addict, the larger size is too big unless you can use a 21-inch smart display.

The best smart speakers on budget

This small speaker is my favorite Amazon product. The little echo point is its fifth generation (you may remember the original, looking like a hockey puck), and this latest model has excellent sound quality for such a small speaker. It does everything a larger speaker can do in a smaller form. This is ideal for diving into an office or dormitory, or even a bathroom, if you know you want to squeeze music while showering. I also like the dots for the clock ($54) version, which includes a simple digital clock – currently in stock, but there is little availability this year.

Connect to Amazon.