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Node-RED on AWS EC2 - Alexa Setup Guide

Deploy Node-RED on an Amazon Web Services EC2 instance. Scalable cloud hosting with flexible instance types, ideal for production Alexa integrations that need high availability.

Requirements

Min RAM 1GB (t3.micro or larger)
Min Storage 8GB EBS volume
OS Amazon Linux 2023, Ubuntu 22.04, or Debian 12
Node.js 18.x or 20.x LTS
  • AWS account
  • EC2 instance (t3.micro eligible for free tier)
  • Security group rule to allow inbound TCP port 1880
  • Network access for Alexa cloud integration

Installation

npm ~15-20 minutes
  1. 1 Launch an EC2 instance from the AWS Console (t3.micro for free tier)
  2. 2 Configure a security group to allow SSH (22) and Node-RED (1880)
  3. 3 SSH into the instance
  4. 4 Install Node.js: curl -fsSL https://deb.nodesource.com/setup_20.x | sudo -E bash - && sudo apt-get install -y nodejs build-essential
  5. 5 Install Node-RED: sudo npm install -g --unsafe-perm node-red
  6. 6 Start Node-RED with pm2 for process management: npm install -g pm2 && pm2 start node-red && pm2 startup && pm2 save
  7. 7 Access Node-RED at http://your-public-ip:1880
  8. 8 Install Alexa integration node via the palette manager inside Node-RED
Official documentation →

Alexa Integration

AWS EC2 provides reliable cloud hosting for Node-RED. Cloud-based Alexa nodes work perfectly. Local-only nodes (amazon-echo, wemo-emulator) will not work since the instance is not on your home network. Secure your instance with HTTPS (use an ALB or nginx reverse proxy) and Node-RED authentication in production.

node-red-contrib-dulonode

Fully compatible on AWS EC2

Works

node-red-contrib-alexa-home-skill

Cloud-based, works well on cloud instances

Works

node-red-contrib-virtual-smart-home

Cloud-based, works well on cloud instances

Works

node-red-contrib-amazon-echo

Local-only UPnP discovery does not work on cloud instances

Not Compatible

node-red-contrib-wemo-emulator

Local-only discovery does not work on cloud instances

Not Compatible

node-red-contrib-alexa-remote2-applestrudel

Cloud-to-cloud communication works on AWS

Works

node-red-contrib-alexa-notifyme

Cloud-based, works without extra configuration

Works

Looking for an Alexa integration node?

There are several Node-RED nodes that support all devices devices with Alexa. Compare features, setup difficulty, and pricing to find the right fit.

Compare Nodes

Platform Info

Platform
AWS EC2
Category
cloud
Install Method
npm
Recommended Node
node-red-contrib-dulonode

Other Platforms

Not sure which node to pick?

See the most downloaded Node-RED Alexa nodes in 2026, ranked by real npm stats. Find the right fit for your smart home setup.

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