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Can you use Alexa with AirPlay?

In today’s electronic-filled world, it’s not uncommon to own devices from different manufacturers, and you might wonder whether you can use Alexa with AirPlay. 

Alexa is the artificial intelligence system developed by Amazon. It’s a cloud-based voice service that you might interact with on some Amazon devices, as well as some third-party devices.

AirPlay is the media sharing program from Apple that lets you send photos, videos, music, and more from your Apple devices to other devices.

Although the popular devices manufactured by Amazon and Apple don’t always play nicely together, options do exist for using Alexa with AirPlay.

Quick Tips:
1. To use Alexa with AirPlay, connect your Apple device to your
Alexa speaker via Bluetooth.
2. Open the Alexa app and navigate to Settings, then turn on
Bluetooth on your Apple device and select the device to pair.
3. You can also use other apps, like Music Streamer, to connect
AirPlay and Alexa.
4. Wi-Fi cannot be used to connect Alexa with AirPlay due to
software limitations.
5. If you encounter issues pairing your devices, select the
device in question and choose “Forget this device” before
attempting to re-pair them.

Can you use Alexa with AirPlay?

You’ll use Bluetooth to connect your iPhone, iPad, or Apple device to your Alexa speaker. Bluetooth is a wireless technology that allows you to send data between devices through the air rather than via a data cord.

Bluetooth is a short-range wireless option that uses radio waves to send information back and forth between paired devices. 

Here are the steps you’ll take to connect your AirPlay device to Alexa. First, open the Amazon Alexa app on your iPad or iPhone.

Then, tap “Devices” on the menu, which will take you to another list of options. You’ll then tap the square labeled “Echo & Alexa” at the top of the screen.

On the resulting screen, you’ll see a list of the Alexa devices with which you can pair your Apple devices.

If you have more than one Echo or Alexa device, choose the device you want to pair with your iPad or iPhone. The next screen will show all the information for that device.

Within the wireless section on the device info page, you’ll choose Bluetooth devices to load the Bluetooth settings screen. You should see an option to “pair new device.” Tap the name of the device you want to pair. 

Then, you’ll want to switch over to the Settings app on your iPhone or iPad. Scan the list of options until you see “Bluetooth,” and tap it.

The next screen will show you a list of all the devices you can pair. At the top of the Bluetooth screen, you’ll see a toggle to turn Bluetooth to the “on” position.

Tap that toggle button and then scroll to the bottom of the screen. Devices currently available for pairing will show up at the bottom. Choose the Alexa device you want to pair and wait a few seconds.

Your Apple device will pair with your Alexa device, and you’ll see “connected” appear next to the device when the two have successfully connected to one another via Bluetooth.

Read more: How to cancel an Alexa routine

Alexa
Alexa

A List of Steps for Connecting AirPlay Devices to Alexa Devices

Not interested in reading the full explanation of steps for connecting your Apple and Amazon devices? Here’s the short version, which you can use if you’re already familiar with the general settings on your devices.

  1. Open the Alexa app
  2. Tap devices
  3. Tap Echo & Alexa
  4. Tap the name of the device you want to pair
  5. Tap Bluetooth devices
  6. Open the Settings app
  7. Tap Bluetooth
  8. Turn Bluetooth on
  9. Tap the device you want to pair

Remember that these directions are for connecting an iPad or iPhone to an Alexa device. You’ll need to follow different (although similar) steps to connect an Android device to Alexa. 

Common Issues Pairing Apple & Alexa Devices

Sometimes, an Apple iPhone or iPad won’t connect to your Alexa device more than once. You’ll pair it with ease the first time but run into problems the second time you want to pair the devices.

This pairing issue is a known iOS Bluetooth problem, but there is a workaround.

Within the list of Bluetooth devices available for pairing, click the exclamation point and choose “Forget this device .”

You’ll then rescan for new devices, and the pairing should proceed without issue. You may need to insert this step each time you want to re-pair your devices.

Can I use wi-fi to connect Alexa with AirPlay?

Unfortunately, you can’t easily use wi-fi to stream music through an Amazon Echo through AirPlay. Software limitations prevent AirPlay from communicating through wi-fi with Alexa devices. 

The only option is to build a computer like an Orange Pi and set it up to use AirPlay.

The process requires some profound technical expertise using a Bluetooth audio transmitter with the computer to pair it to the Alexa device.

Read more: Can you use Alexa with Apple Carplay?

Can I use other apps to connect AirPlay and Alexa?

By default, iPhones and iPads use Apple Music as the app for playing music. However, other apps exist that will not only play music and other media files on your iPhone, but will operate via Bluetooth to stream the music to your Alexa device.

For example, Music Streamer is one option. The program makes it easy to select your playback device of choice through Bluetooth.