• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechPointCloud

This Amazon Echo Tip Is Great for Families and Roommates

By
John Patrick Pullen
John Patrick Pullen
and
TIME
TIME
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
John Patrick Pullen
John Patrick Pullen
and
TIME
TIME
Down Arrow Button Icon
February 13, 2017, 10:04 AM ET
Amazon.com Inc. Launches Its Echo Home Assistant In The U.K.
Bloomberg Bloomberg via Getty Images

Ideally suited for common spaces like the kitchen or the living room, the Amazon Echo smart speaker (and its little cousin, the Amazon Echo Dot) is an ideal device for sharing with family, friends, and roommates, because all you need to use it is a voice.

But you may want to keep some of the Echo’s features to yourself.

Thankfully, Amazon (AMZN) offers the ability to associate Alexa, the Echo’s voice assistant, with multiple user accounts.

One big benefit to using multiple accounts on your Echo is getting access to the content, like music and audiobooks, owned by all of its users. For instance, if your roommate bought the new Ed Sheeran album via Amazon’s digital music store and both of your Amazon accounts were linked on the same Echo or other Alexa-enabled device, you can pre-game to “Shape of You” too. (This benefit works with other Amazon devices too.)

Related: The Ultimate Amazon Echo User’s Guide

Linking multiple accounts on an Echo isn’t just a smart move for roommates. Spouses and significant others can also benefit from getting together. Linked accounts share their to-do lists and calendars, making sure that everyone’s on the same page—even on a device that doesn’t have a screen.

To add accounts to your Echo or other Alexa-powered device, open the Amazon app and tap on the menu button in the top-left corner. Next, tap on Settings, and then select Manage your Amazon Household under the Account heading. Following the directions from there should let you add a new user to your Alexa device — provided they already have an Amazon account. (If they don’t, it’s simple to sign up for one.)

Get Data Sheet, Fortune‘s technology newsletter.

There is one important detail to take note of: all the accounts added to an Echo will be able to order items from Amazon using the original user’s credit card. So, word to the wise: Set your Echo to require a password to confirm purchases. (This is a good idea in general.)

To set up the confirmation code, navigate back to the settings and tap on Voice Purchasing, which is right above Household Profile. On the screen that appears, you can select a four-digit PIN, or disable voice purchasing entirely.

To switch between user profiles, simply say “Alexa, switch to [your first name]’s account.” Or, if you don’t know whose account the Echo is associated with, you can always say, “Alexa, identify account.”

We’ve included affiliate links in this article. Click here to learn what those are.

This article originally appeared on Time.com.

About the Authors
By John Patrick Pullen
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
By TIME
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

Artemis II’s moonbound astronauts capture Earth’s brilliant blue beauty as they travel more than 110,000 miles from home
InnovationNASA
Artemis II’s moonbound astronauts capture Earth’s brilliant blue beauty as they travel more than 110,000 miles from home
By Marcia Dunn and The Associated PressApril 3, 2026
7 hours ago
man silhouette two computer screens
CybersecurityOnline
Internet Watch Foundation finds 260-fold increase in AI-generated CSAM in just one year, and ‘it’s the tip of the iceberg’
By Catherina GioinoApril 3, 2026
7 hours ago
A woman working alone in an office
AIJobs
MIT created duplicate AI workers to tackle thousands of different tasks. The verdict? Most of the time AI is still just ‘minimally sufficient’
By Tristan BoveApril 3, 2026
11 hours ago
Fortune 500 Power Moves: Which executives are gaining and losing power
C-SuiteFortune 500 Power Moves
Fortune 500 Power Moves: Which executives are gaining and losing power
By Fortune EditorsApril 3, 2026
12 hours ago
Dario Amodei sits in a white chair with his hands pressed together in front of a pink and orange background.
AIAI agents
The AI kill switch just got harder to find: LLM-powered chatbots will defy orders and deceive users if asked to delete another model, study finds
By Sasha RogelbergApril 3, 2026
12 hours ago
Microsoft is spending billions on AI—but even NASA astronauts can’t escape Outlook headaches
LawNASA
Microsoft is spending billions on AI—but even NASA astronauts can’t escape Outlook headaches
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezApril 3, 2026
14 hours ago

Most Popular

Google CEO Sundar Pichai says we’re just a decade away from a new normal of extraterrestrial data centers
Innovation
Google CEO Sundar Pichai says we’re just a decade away from a new normal of extraterrestrial data centers
By Fortune EditorsApril 3, 2026
20 hours ago
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
Real Estate
Gen Z fled San Francisco for Texas and Florida. Now they’re turning ‘welcomer cities’ into the next big tech towns
By Fortune EditorsApril 2, 2026
2 days ago
The Walmart billionaires next door: Quiet backlash is brewing against the heirs who remade the retailer’s hometown
Magazine
The Walmart billionaires next door: Quiet backlash is brewing against the heirs who remade the retailer’s hometown
By Fortune EditorsApril 3, 2026
22 hours ago
Major 4-day workweek study suggests that when we work 5 days we spend one doing basically nothing
Success
Major 4-day workweek study suggests that when we work 5 days we spend one doing basically nothing
By Fortune EditorsApril 2, 2026
2 days ago
Current price of oil as of April 2, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of April 2, 2026
By Fortune EditorsApril 2, 2026
2 days ago
Current price of oil as of April 3, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of April 3, 2026
By Fortune EditorsApril 3, 2026
16 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.