How to set up Alexa in an unsupported geo/country - should you be so inclined.....

I have recently joined the SONOS family. When my four SONOS Ones arrived I was keen to get Alexa up and going through my SONOS speakers everywhere I could.

However, imagine my surprise when when I got to the voice services setup page and it said (Alexa) 'Not available in your country.' However, as they say in the trade when the going gets tough, the tough open a beer and start tweaking/modding/hacking.

For the curious I bring you a step-by-step 'hypothetical' guide to getting Alexa going with you Sonos One in an unsupported region. Should you be so inclined.......

1. Login to your SONOS account. Change your country to the US.

2. Go to alexa.amazon.com and login with your Amazon account. Just log in. Nothing else needs to be done here.

3. Go back to the Sonos app on your phone. Go to 'More' at the bottom right and tap on “Voice Services”. If everything went well, there will be a set of instructions to link up SONOS and Alexa.

4. Getting and installing the Alexa App. Ok now here comes the hard part as the Alexa App is geo restricted. Alexa won't be available on Apple or Google's stores in your country. Hence the reason you are following this guide:

A) For Apple try this https://beebom.com/how-to-install-georestricted-apps-iphone/

😎 For Android you have two options:

i) The VPN method. You can try installing a VPN service, disabling location services, clearing the cache from the Play store and logging into the Play store in the US over VPN. NordVPN seemed to work for me (other leading brands of VPN are available).

ii) The APK method. YOU DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK. Downloading the Alexa APK from a 3rd party site such as APK monk(https://www.apkmonk.com/app/com.amazon.dee.app/). Because of potential malware issues BEFORE you run this APK file upload it to Virus Total (https://www.virustotal.com/) or if you are a techie use log cat. But again installing APKs from third party sites is done totally at your own risk

NB: I'm NOT an iPhone guy. I'm told that method A will work by my iOS/iPhone using counterparts. If it doesn't work find another way and append your method to this thread.

5. Go back to the SONOS App you should be able to setup your SONOS with Alexa following the menu in the regular way.

6. Annoy you spouse/partner/cat/imaginary friend with Alexa voice commands through your swanky Sonos ONE.

NB: This is 'hypothetical' guide to an unsupported tweak/hack and I take zero responsibility for any damage you do to yourself or anything you own following the instructions above.

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Thanks man! I'm going to try it out

No worries bro. It works fine 'hypothetically' on all seven of my Sonos One speakers and my Beam. My wife still hates Alexa though.

I been working, man your are awesome, thank you

Once I get my Alexa done, can I switch back my apple acc to Singapore without any issue?

I have no clue I'm an android guy. Perhaps someone running iOS can comment.

I been working, man your are awesome, thank you

Glad it worked for you bro.

thanks, as they say this 'hypothetically' worked for getting Alexa on my Beam

Perfect. I'm up to 7 Ones and a Beam that Alexa 'hypothetically' works on. Operating Spotify and Hue through Alexa on SONOS is what it's all about.

I can't get it working 😞 I have US set on my Sonos account (via website, as I can't find such option in the mobile/desktop app) and it still says Alexa is unsupported in my country. The country is Poland, Alexa is officially supported here, just not on Sonos.

After setting the country on the website I've unplugged and plugged back all my sonos devices and restarted controller settings from scratch (via option 'reset' in app's settings).

Any ideas what more can I do?

Did you follow the instructions to the letter or did you skip step two?

Nope, I haven't skipped anything. I was logged to alexa.amazon.com on my computer.

Also I have app on my phone with sonos skill installed and devices added.

Now I'm also logged in on phone. It simply shows page with link 'download the app'.

Edit: tried whole set of instructions on my iPad, without Alexa installed. Still nothing, I'm stuck at 3).

Ok, I'm officially an idiot. I've changed language on sidebar on sonos.com/myaccount, not via 'edit profile' 😉

Ok, I'm officially an idiot. I've changed language on sidebar on sonos.com/myaccount, not via 'edit profile' ;-)

We have all been there mate. I'm glad you found your way out of the hole.

BTW, if you haven't tried it yet may I also recommend using IFTTT with your Sonos and Alexa. Some very nice applets that are handy.

For now I've discovered that Apple Music for Alexa is not available in my region :/

Thanks for the hint, I'll check it.

I have recently joined the SONOS family. When my four SONOS Ones arrived I was keen to get Alexa up and going through my SONOS speakers everywhere I could.

However, imagine my surprise when when I got to the voice services setup page and it said (Alexa) 'Not available in your country.' However, as they say in the trade when the going gets tough, the tough open a beer and start tweaking/modding/hacking.

For the curious I bring you a step-by-step 'hypothetical' guide to getting Alexa going with you Sonos One in an unsupported region. Should you be so inclined.......

1. Login to your SONOS account. Change your country to the US.

2. Go to alexa.amazon.com and login with your Amazon account. Just log in. Nothing else needs to be done here.

3. Go back to the Sonos app on your phone. Go to 'More' at the bottom right and tap on “Voice Services”. If everything went well, there will be a set of instructions to link up SONOS and Alexa.

4. Getting and installing the Alexa App. Ok now here comes the hard part as the Alexa App is geo restricted. Alexa won't be available on Apple or Google's stores in your country. Hence the reason you are following this guide:
A) For Apple try this https://beebom.com/how-to-install-georestricted-apps-iphone/
For Android you have two options:
i) The VPN method. You can try installing a VPN service, disabling location services, clearing the cache from the Play store and logging into the Play store in the US over VPN. NordVPN seemed to work for me (other leading brands of VPN are available).
ii) The APK method. YOU DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK. Downloading the Alexa APK from a 3rd party site such as APK monk(https://www.apkmonk.com/app/com.amazon.dee.app/). Because of potential malware issues BEFORE you run this APK file upload it to Virus Total (https://www.virustotal.com/) or if you are a techie use log cat. But again installing APKs from third party sites is done totally at your own risk
NB: I'm NOT an iPhone guy. I'm told that method A will work by my iOS/iPhone using counterparts. If it doesn't work find another way and append your method to this thread.

5. Go back to the SONOS App you should be able to setup your SONOS with Alexa following the menu in the regular way.

6. Annoy you spouse/partner/cat/imaginary friend with Alexa voice commands through your swanky Sonos ONE.

NB: This is 'hypothetical' guide to an unsupported tweak/hack and I take zero responsibility for any damage you do to yourself or anything you own following the instructions above.

HI there!! Im having some trouble on step 3 ! Im not having the “go to more” or ¨Voice services¨ under services. I have Android 9.

Thanks in advance!!!

Hi buddy!

It sounds like you experiencing the same problem as I did. You missed one significant step, which does not allow you to add a voice service. After completing all the points above and before proceeding with the Sonos app you should stop the app if it is active or suspended in the tray and clear cache in the app settings of your Android phone. By clearing cache you will delete everything, which is related to your local Sonos setup including old regional data. This data prevents you from unlocking voice services. When you lunch the app again it will ask you to restore the setup. Afterwards you will have Voice option in the Services menu. Hope that helps!

Ok, I'm officially an idiot. I've changed language on sidebar on sonos.com/myaccount, not via 'edit profile'

Hi, I think I have the same problem, but don’t understand where to find the ‘edit profile’ option, can you tell me where it is please?

If your sample app is still up and running, you should see status as "Online". Select your device, and change the location by Zip Code to whatever you prefer tellpopeyes.

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