The order was made by General Curtis Scaparrotti, the commander of American troops in the region, during a visit to Osan air base, south of Seoul.
At the weekend a US B-52 bomber - flanked by two fighter jets - flew over South Korea in a show of force.
North Korea's fourth nuclear test was carried out on Wednesday, angering Western powers and alarming the country's neighbours.
However, most countries, including the US, seriously doubt its claims that it exploded a hydrogen bomb.
Kim Jong-Un, the leader of the secretive communist state, said it was designed to protect the region "from the danger of nuclear war caused by the US-led imperialists", according to the country's news agency.
More of America's hi-tech military hardware could also be heading to the region.
"The United States and South Korea are continuously and closely having discussions on additional deployment of strategic assets," said a spokesman for South Korea's defence ministry.
That could include F-22 stealth fighter jets, nuclear-powered submarines and B-2 bombers, according to media in the country.
Concern over the nuclear test prompted South Korea and Japan, rival powers in the region, to use their shared military hotline for the first time, Seoul's defence ministry said.
Since Friday, South Korea has also been blasting propaganda from huge speakers along the border - including karaoke music - a move the North has historically viewed as tantamount to an act of war.
There was an exchange of artillery fire the last time the speakers were used in August.
The North has in turn started its own broadcasts, according to the Yonhap news agency, likely intended to keep its soldiers from hearing the South Korean messages.
Seoul also said on Monday that it would restrict access to the jointly-run Kaesong industrial complex north of the heavily fortified border to the "minimum necessary level" starting from Tuesday.
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