Amazon Echo Show 8 (2025)

Built for the kitchen counter

Echo Show 8 (2025) makes the most sense in an Alexa household that wants one screen in the kitchen for recipes, timers, camera feeds and video calls, and wants that same screen to run the smart home. Its 8.7-inch touchscreen is noticeably larger than Nest Hub's seven inches, and front-facing stereo speakers with a woofer give music and video more to work with than a small bedside display. Amazon claims 15 percent more viewing area and up to twice the bass of the 2023 Echo Show 8.

The panel is HD at 800 × 1340 pixels. That is fine for a recipe, a doorbell feed or a photo slideshow across the counter. If the screen will also be the room's video player, Echo Show 11 has an 11-inch Full HD panel for about $50 more at list.

One box can replace a separate hub

Inside are a Zigbee hub, an Alexa Matter controller and a Thread 1.3 border router. In an Alexa home, that lets a Zigbee motion sensor, a Matter-over-Thread lock and a Wi-Fi Matter plug join without a brand hub or another Amazon device. In an Alexa home without a hub-equipped Echo, that is a real saving in boxes and power outlets.

The hub serves Alexa. The screen controls devices on the Alexa account, so a household that also uses Apple Home, Google Home or Home Assistant still needs those apps and their own controllers. Presence detection and an ambient temperature sensor can start Alexa routines, such as turning on the kitchen lights when someone walks in. Treat those as conveniences until they prove reliable in your room.

The 2023 Echo Show 8 already has a Zigbee hub, Matter controller and Thread border router. Upgrade for the screen and speakers if they matter to you; the hub roles are no reason to replace a working display.

The camera is useful and harder to cover

The 13-megapixel camera keeps callers framed during video calls and lets you check in on the room from the Alexa app. That is part of the appeal in a kitchen. Beside a bed it is a drawback, and this generation drops the physical camera shutter: privacy relies on a button that disables the microphones and camera, plus camera controls on the device and in the app. A buyer who wants a camera-free bedside screen, and can run it in Google Home, should look at Nest Hub instead.

The screen sits at a fixed angle on its speaker base. Tilting and swiveling it needs Amazon's separately sold adjustable stand, about $40, which matters on a high counter or a low shelf. A 30-watt power adapter is in the box, and the display needs an outlet nearby.

Buy it on sale, or for the screen

Amazon launched Echo Show 8 at about $180 in November 2025 and raised the US list price to about $200 in late August 2026. At list it now costs about $20 more than Echo Hub and about twice as much as Nest Hub. On sale at about $150, as it has been at Target, it is an easy recommendation for an Alexa kitchen. At full price, buy it for the screen, speakers and camera. If the screen is not the point, Echo Dot Max costs about $80 less at list and has the same Zigbee hub, Alexa Matter controller and Thread border router.

Count Alexa+ separately. The display includes free Alexa+ access for a limited time; after that, Alexa+ needs Prime or a subscription of about $20 a month, and it requires a US Amazon account.

Choose Echo Hub instead when the job is a wall-mounted control panel by the door, with its mount in the box. Choose Echo Show 8 when the screen lives on the counter and the household will use it for calls, music and video as well as the lights.