How to Get Alexa to Stop Talking: 5 Simple Ways

Have you ever noticed how Alexa occasionally adds unsolicited comments after fulfilling your requests? You know, that familiar “By the way” that follows a simple command?

While Alexa means well with these extra remarks, it can sometimes interrupt with uninvited announcements or linger longer than necessary with random comments.

Fortunately, there are several methods to tone down Alexa’s chatter. In some instances, a few tweaks in the Alexa app will suffice; in others, a bit of clever maneuvering may be required.

Fear not, as we’ll walk you through the process, paving the way for a more tranquil environment.

Note: The following suggestions pertain to the traditional version of Alexa, not its newly released AI-enhanced counterpart. Although Alexa+ is gradually being launched to select users, most remain on the older version.

Disable Weather Notifications

Staying updated on severe weather is crucial, especially in the face of natural disasters like storms and floods.

However, alerts about rip currents and gusty winds can feel excessive, especially since you may already receive similar updates through your smartphone, home security setup, or various apps.

Here’s how you can customize or turn off Alexa’s weather notifications:

1. Launch the Alexa app, tap More, Settings, Notifications, and scroll to Weather.
2. Select Severe Weather Alerts and adjust the options. You can decide if you want Alexa to repeat alerts or notify you just once, as well as whether you prefer mobile push notifications.
3. Choose how you’d like to receive these notifications: either through spoken alerts by Alexa or regular notifications on your devices.

If you’re concerned about package theft, getting an immediate alert when an Amazon delivery arrives is essential.

However, you might not want to hear every single detail about your Amazon orders, such as when items are on the way, whether returns were processed, or the status of subscription items.

To limit Alexa’s updates on your Amazon purchases, follow these steps:

1. Open the Alexa app, tap More, Settings, Notifications, and then Amazon Shopping.
2. Review the options and disable the notifications that annoy you. You can silence updates about orders in transit or delivered, or those concerning returns.
3. You can also turn off notifications for “Subscribe & Save” orders or promotional recommendations.

Disable “Always Follow Up” Mode for Reminders

Alexa has a knack for being persistent with reminders, often buzzing you multiple times until tasks are marked complete.

While you may appreciate that level of diligence for certain activities, endless reminders can be quite bothersome. If you’re finding Alexa’s follow-up notifications overwhelming, try this adjustment.

1. Tap More, Settings, Reminders.
2. Scroll to the Always Follow Up setting and turn it off to prevent repeated reminders about incomplete tasks.
3. While you’re there, you can also limit how many times Alexa announces a reminder (options range from one to three reminders).

Activate Brief Mode

Alexa can be a bit talkative during routine interactions, especially when responding to your commands.

If you prefer a more straightforward interaction without the extra commentary, activating Brief Mode may be the solution you’re after.

1. Go to More, Settings, Voice Responses.
2. Enable Brief Mode.

With this setting, Alexa should respond to your requests with minimal chatter, mainly communicating through beeps.

Suppress “By the Way” Comments

While Brief Mode helps reduce verbosity, don’t expect it to eliminate those “by the way” remarks entirely.

Even with Brief Mode activated, you might still encounter unwanted asides from Alexa. Unfortunately, there’s no official setting to eliminate these completely, but a user-discovered hack might help.

By telling Alexa to “stop By the Way,” you can temporarily prevent further interruptions. However, this solution is short-lived.

This feature is part of TechHive’s extensive coverage on the best smart speakers.

A more lasting fix involves creating a daily routine that prompts Alexa to issue the “stop By the Way” command. Here’s how:

1. Tap More, Routines, then click the “+” at the top-right corner.
2. Name the routine (for example, “Stop by the way”), and set a trigger for it (like a specific time every day using Schedule, At Time).
3. Add the action by tapping Custom and then typing in “stop by the way.”

With this setup, Alexa will remind herself daily to skip the “by the way” remarks, bringing you closer to a quieter experience.