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The speakers in your TV might sound pretty good, but once you plug in a soundbar, you’ll never want to go back. Soundbars are a great way to level up your home entertainment system. But what about making that soundbar smart? By adding in Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, or even a smart TV platform like Fire TV or Roku? That’s what we’re rounding up today.
This list has the best Smart Soundbars that are currently available, and they range from around $100 all the way up to over $900. So there’s something here for everyone’s budget.
Best Smart Soundbars
A few years ago, Smart Soundbars were pretty uncommon. Really only having a couple, with one from Sonos and one from Polk Audio. Now we’re starting to see them take over a bit. Which is really great to see. Here are the best Smart Soundbars you can currently buy.
Editor’s Note: Due to the ongoing supply constraints, some of these may be out of stock when you’re reading this. We’re doing our best to edit this when that happens, but some might get missed.
| Product name | Cost | Where to buy |
| Roku Streambar Pro | $162 | Amazon |
| Sonos Beam (Gen 2) | $449 | Sonos |
| Nebula Soundbar | $159 | Amazon |
| Roku Streambar | $104 | Amazon |
| Roku Smart Soundbar | $179 | Amazon |
| Sonos Arc | $899 | Sonos |
| Bose Smart Soundbar 900 | $899 | Amazon |
Roku Streambar Pro
The Roku Streambar Pro is one of the higher-end soundbars that Roku has released. This one has Roku’s OS built right in, so you’ll want to plug it into an HDMI-ARC port on your TV. It’s able to do 4K HDR as well, or down to 1080p if you don’t have a 4K TV>
Along with all of that, it also provides cinematic sound, with dynamic bass from Dolby Audio. But there is no Dolby Atmos included here. Which given the low price here, that is not a surprise.
Sonos Beam (Gen 2)
The Sonos Beam (gen 2) is one of the more compact soundbars on this list, without sacrificing audio quality. And it is a perfect pick up if you already have Sonos speakers in your home.
With the Beam, you’re getting the choice of either Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant in your home, connected to your TV. This is a smart soundbar. It also works with the other Sonos speakers out there, so you can easily create a wireless surround sound setup, with the Sonos One, or the PLAY:5, or any of the other speakers that Sonos has. Which is a really incredible experience.
Sonos does really well with its sound quality too. With the bass being very bumpy, but not over-powering. And the mids and highs are still crystal clear. There is also an EQ built-in, that you can use to adjust the audio if you wish.
All of that fits into this package that can easily fill a room with sound, and doesn’t even come with a remote. Because it is completely controlled by your TV.
Nebula Soundbar
The Nebula (by Anker) Soundbar is one of the lesser expensive options on this list. But instead of having Roku built-in, this has Amazon’s Fire TV built-in. So you can kill two birds with one stone here. Using one HDMI port to get a better smart TV operating system and a better sound experience all at once.
This is a 2.1-channel sound bar, so it’s not the best on the market, and there’s no Dolby Atmos, but it will be an upgrade from your TVs built-in speakers.
It also is able to provide 4K HDR support for watching movies and TV shows through Fire TV.
Roku Streambar
The Roku Streambar is the cheapest soundbar that Roku offers. It does still have Roku built-in, but the audio isn’t quite the strongest here. Still an upgrade over your TV’s built-in speakers. But it’s not Dolby Atmos or theater quality. Of course, this is a $100 soundbar that also doubles as a dongle with Roku included, so you get what you pay for here.
This soundbar is capable of 4K and HDR, however. But there is no Dolby Vision here either.
Roku Smart Soundbar
- Price: $179
- Where to buy: Amazon
The Roku Smart Soundbar is exactly that. You can think of it as a soundbar, with a Roku built-in. That means that it does connect to your TV using HDMI ARC. But with this, you won’t need to buy a Roku, as all of that is inside this soundbar.
It comes with a Roku remote, so you can control it and your TV using this remote. It’s also going to provide some really great sound for your TV. This is a small-ish soundbar, but the sound is definitely not small. It can easily fill your room with sound. And it’s super simple to set up as well.
The Roku Smart Soundbar does also include support for up to 4K HDR. So if you have a 4K HDR TV already, then this is a great addition. As you can watch Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, YouTube TV and more, via your soundbar. Which sounds kinda crazy when you say it out loud. But it’s true.
Sonos Arc
- Price: $899
- Where to buy: Sonos
If you’re invested in the Sonos ecosystem, then the Arc is a really good choice. But then again, why would you buy this over the Beam, which is half the price?
Two reasons. One, this has Dolby Atmos support – the first Sonos product to offer it. And two, it’s a larger speaker, with more audio. Making it better for larger rooms, and larger TVs.
The Sonos Arc can still work with a surround sound setup – using two Sonos One speakers, PLAY:5’s, etc. Which is one of the more compelling reasons to buy the Arc. It also offers up some really deep bass, with crystal clear mids and highs. Like the Beam, the Arc can also be controlled via the Sonos app. So you can adjust the EQ to your liking, and also group speakers together, much easier.
With Dolby Atmos and 3D sound available on the Sonos Arc, it makes it a really great soundbar to pick up. Even though the price is a bit tough to swallow.
It’s worth noting that the Arc is unavailable almost everywhere. Due to the pandemic, and how popular the Arc is, Sonos has had a hard time keeping it on store shelves. Just a heads up.
Bose Smart Soundbar 900
Kind of ironically, this is the only soundbar on this list to use “Smart” in its name, yet it’s the least smart. What makes this a “Smart” soundbar is the fact that it has Alexa built-in. Basically, Bose took an Echo Dot and put it inside. So this isn’t a “works with Alexa” soundbar, but an “Alexa-enabled soundbar”. Meaning it can take the place of your Echo in the living room.
It does work over HDMI ARC, so you are able to control it with your TVs remote, which is really nice. This is also one of the few on this list that has Dolby Atmos support.
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