Just Drop In: How to Call Someone From Your Amazon Echo

Alexa isn't the only one you can talk to through your Echo device. You can also make and receive voice calls with other people. The Alexa app supports Alexa-to-Alexa calling on an iPhone with iOS 9.0 or higher, and an Android phone with Android 5.0 or higher. If you own an Echo Show, you can place and receive video calls as well. 

Echo devices also use an intercom-like system called Drop In to call other Echo devices directly, either in your home or another household. It works with most mobile phones and landlines in the United States, UK, Canada, and Mexico. Here’s how to enlist Alexa as your own phone operator.

Alexa-to-Alexa Calling

To get started, open the Alexa app on your phone and tap More > Communicate. If you haven't already registered for Alexa-to-Alexa calling, you're asked to confirm your name, allow access to your contacts, and verify your phone number. You're then able to call someone in your contacts.

You can ask Alexa to make the call through your Echo device by saying "Alexa, call [name of contact]." To make a call from the Alexa mobile app, open the Communicate screen. Tap the Call icon and then select the contact you want to call.

If that person is set up to receive calls through an Echo device or the Alexa app, you'll see options for making an audio or video call to them. Any call you place is sent to the Echo device owned by the person you're calling and is also routed to the Alexa app on their phone, allowing them to choose how they want to answer.

If you're using an Echo Show smart display or the Alexa app to make a video call, you can toggle the video on and off at any time. Calls from the Alexa app can be ended by tapping the End button. If you're calling from your Echo, say "Alexa, hang up."

If you receive a call, the light ring on your Echo device turns green, the Alexa app notifies you, and Alexa tells you who's calling. On an Echo Show or in the Alexa app, you can see the contact name of the caller. You can then answer the call by saying "Alexa, answer" or reject the call by saying "Alexa, ignore." The call can also be accepted or rejected from your phone.

Drop In on an Echo Device

You can call someone's Echo directly by using the Drop In feature, essentially turning an Echo device into an intercom. It works with Echo devices inside and outside your home. The difference between Alexa-to-Alexa calling and Drop In is that the person on the other end doesn't need to accept the Drop In; it happens automatically.

To use this feature, you must have already registered for Alexa-to-Alexa calling. Both parties also must enable the Drop In feature in the Alexa app so you and the other person can drop in on each other. Go to Communicate > Drop In and you're initially asked to enable it in your profile. Tap the My Profile link and turn on Allow Drop In.

To drop in on an Echo device within your household, say "Alexa, drop in on [name of device]." Alexa asks for confirmation. You're then connected with the device and can start chatting with the person on the other end. To end the call, say "Alexa, hang up."

You can also use the Alexa app. From the Communicate screen, tap Drop In and select the name of the device to begin the call. (To drop in on an Echo Show, you'll need to give Alexa access to your camera.) To end the Drop in, tap the End button.

The feature also allows you to drop in on every Echo device in your house, which can be used to contact everyone in your household. Say “Alexa, drop in on all devices.” The first time you do this, Alexa will have you enable Enhanced Features. (This can also be enabled in the Alexa app; go to More > Settings > Communication > Enhanced Features and turn on Enabled.

You can drop in on a device outside your household as long as the contact on the other end has given you permission from their Alexa app. To drop in this way, say "Alexa, drop in on [name of contact]" to be connected to that contact through one of their Echo devices. To disconnect, say "Alexa, hang up."

Plus, you can drop in on someone through the Alexa app. Tap Communicate, select the Contacts icon at the upper right of the screen, and pick the person you wish to contact. If that person has given the necessary permission to the Drop In feature, a Drop In icon appears on their profile screen.

Tap Drop In and select your Echo device if you have more than one. You're then connected to the other person and can start talking. Tap the End button to end the Drop In.

If you want to receive a Drop In from a specific contact, you need to give that person permission. To do this, go to Communicate and tap Contacts. Choose the name of the contact to whom you wish to give Drop In permission, then enable Allow Drop In under the Permissions section. When you receive a Drop In from that contact, you'll hear a chime, and you can start talking. Say "Alexa, hang up" to end the Drop In.

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If you don’t want people dropping in on a specific Echo device, go to More > Settings > Device Settings and choose the Echo device for which you want to disable Drop In. Select the Do Not Disturb icon so that no one can contact you through this feature.

Alternatively, go to Devices and tap the name of a specific Echo device. From here, tap the gear icon at the top and go to Communications > Drop In. You can then customize Drop In calls to only allow permitted contacts, devices from your household, or no one.

You can prevent a regular call or Drop In from bothering you on a particular Echo device. To do this, say "Alexa, turn on Do Not Disturb." To allow calls and other notifications again, say "Alexa, turn off Do Not Disturb.”

Echo-to-Phone Calling

Echo-to-phone calling is supported by all Echo devices as well as most mobile and landline numbers in the US, UK, Canada, and Mexico. After you set up Alexa-to-Alexa Calling, your phone number is associated with your account and is what appears to people you call through your Echo.

To place a call to someone in your phone's contact list, say "Alexa, call [name of contact]. If the contact has multiple numbers, you can specify which to dial. Say "Alexa, call [name of contact] mobile," or "Alexa, call [name of contact] work." If you're calling someone not in your contact list, just say "Alexa, call [phone number]." 

There are certain types of numbers you can't call through your Echo. Those include premium-rate or toll numbers (such as 1-900 numbers), emergency services (such as 911), abbreviated dial codes (such as 211 or 411), and international numbers outside of the US, the UK, Canada, and Mexico. 

Keep in mind that this may not work if you call a business that requires you to punch in numbers for menu options. When presented with a numeric menu option, say “Alexa, press the number 3 on the dial pad” to see if that capability works. You can also call someone from the Alexa app by selecting the person's number. When done, simply say "Alexa, hang up."