Quickly find your public and private IP addresses with this guide
Do you need to find your computer, phone, or tablet's IP address? When it comes to your home or office computer, phone, or tablet, you'll typically have two IP addresses—a public IP address that's visible to other people on the internet, and a private IP address that's used to identify your device on your local network. This wikiHow article will show you the easiest ways to find both your public and private IP addresses on any device, including your Windows, Mac, or Linux computer, and your Android, iPhone, or iPad.
How to Find Your IP Address: At a Glance
- To quickly view your public IP address, go to whatismyipaddress.com in your web browser.
- Your public IP address is visible to other people on the internet. Your private IP address is only used on your local network.
- On Windows, you can use the "ipconfig" command in the Command Prompt to quickly view your IP address.
Steps
Section 3 of 7:
Find Private IP Address on Windows
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Press the Windows key on your keyboard. This will open the Start menu or screen on Windows 11, Windows 10, and Windows 8.
- On Windows 7 and earlier, you can select the Command Prompt from the Start menu and then skip to Step 3.
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Type "cmd" and press ↵ Enter . This opens a Command Prompt window.
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Type ipconfig and press ↵ Enter . This will display all of your networking information. [2] X Research source You may have to expand the Command Prompt window to see it all.
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Find your private IP address under your wireless or ethernet adapter. If you're connected to the internet using Wi-Fi, you'll find your IP address under the "Wireless LAN adapter Wi-Fi" heading. If you have a wired connection, you'll find the IP address under the "Ethernet adapter" heading.
- If your network is using IPv4, which is most common, you'll see the IP address next to "IPv4 Address."
- If your network is using IPv6, your IPv6 address will appear next to "Link-local IPv6 Address."
- If you have both an IPv4 and IPv6 IP address listed, the address you're looking for is likely the IPv4 address.
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Other ways to find your private IP address on Windows. While the previous steps will work on all versions of Windows, you can also use these operating system-specific steps to quickly view your IP address :
- Windows 11:
- Click the Windows Start menu, go to Settings > Network & internet , choose either Wi-Fi or Ethernet , and find your IP address under "Properties." [3] X Trustworthy Source Microsoft Support Technical support and product information from Microsoft. Go to source
- Windows 10:
- Click the network icon on your taskbar—it'll be the Wi-Fi bar symbol or a small computer. [4] X Trustworthy Source Microsoft Support Technical support and product information from Microsoft. Go to source
- Click your connection. If you're connected to Wi-Fi, select the Wi-Fi network name. For ethernet, choose your ethernet network.
- Find your IP address under "Properties."
- Windows 11:
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Section 4 of 7:
Find Private IP Address on Mac
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1Open System Settings on your Mac. To get there, click the Apple menu at the top-left corner of the screen and select System Settings . [5] X Research source
- If you are using an earlier version of macOS, click System Preferences instead.
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2Click Network . You will see this in the left panel. macOS Ventura, you'll see this in the left panel.
- On macOS Monterey and earlier, click the Network icon near the middle.
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3Select your network connection. For example, if you're connected to Wi-Fi, choose that option. [6] X Research source
- Be sure to choose the option that says "Connected." Otherwise, you will not see an assigned IP address.
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4Click Details to display your IP address. You'll see this under your connection.
- If you're using macOS Monterey or earlier, you'll see your IP address in the right panel.
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Section 5 of 7:
Find Private IP Address on Linux
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Open a Terminal window. You can easily view your Linux computer's IP address with simple commands. Start by opening a Terminal , which you can usually do by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T . [7] X Research source
- If you're using Ubuntu Linux, you can also pull up your IP address without having to type commands. Just go to Activities overview, type settings , click Settings , select your connection type (e.g., Wi-Fi or Network > PCI Ethernet ), and then click the gear icon next to your connection. [8] X Research source
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2Type ip addr and press ↵ Enter . This displays the private IP address for each network interface (ethernet and Wi-Fi) on your Linux desktop or server.
- You can also use the command hostname -i to view just the IP address for your current connection.
- While the ifconfig command used to be used to display IP info, the command is now deprecated.
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Section 6 of 7:
Find Your Private IP Address on Android
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Open the Settings app. You'll find this in your app list, as well as in your quick settings.
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2Tap Network & Internet or Connections . Because all Android interfaces are a little different, the name of the Settings option you're looking for may vary. This section may also be called Wireless & Networks or Wireless Controls .
- If you don't see any of these options, just skip to the next step.
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Tap the wireless network you're connected to. On some Androids, you'll now see the IP address. If you don't see it, continue to the next step. [10] X Research source
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If the IP address isn't visible, tap the button to show more options. Sometimes you'll see an arrow that expands the section, but you may need to tap Advanced , Configure , or a similar option instead. If you don't see any of these options, tap the three dots at the top-right corner first.
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Find your IP address next to "IP Address." You might have to scroll down to see it. [11] X Research source
- If these steps don't work for your Android, try opening Settings , and then tap About phone > Status .
- You can also try System > About phone > Status .
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Section 7 of 7:
Find Private IP Address on iPhone/iPad
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Open your iPhone's Settings. You'll find this app on your Home screen or in your app library. [12] X Research source
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Tap the ⓘ icon next to your wireless network. It's the small "i" inside of a circle. [14] X Research source
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Scroll down to the "IP Address" section. This will display your iPhone's IP address on your local Wi-Fi network.
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Expert Q&A
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QuestionHow do I locate my IP address?Luigi Oppido is the Owner and Operator of Pleasure Point Computers in Santa Cruz, California. Luigi has over 25 years of experience in general computer repair, data recovery, virus removal, and upgrades. He is also the host of the Computer Man Show! broadcasted on KSQD covering central California for over two years.The easiest way to do this is to go to canyouseeme.org, which will show you your public IP address when the page loads.
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QuestionI can access any website from my laptop except one. When I try to login it says "403 forbidden access." How can I fix this so that I can login?Community AnswerIf this is someone else's website, that is their issue. A 403 error means you are not allowed to view the folder's contents. If it is your server, you can change the .htaccess files to allow viewing of a folder. Typically index.html or home.html automatically load at the root of the website, and you typically don't have to type them out if it is in a folder.
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QuestionCan I change my IP address for a one time message?Community AnswerYou can, and it's very easy. All you need to do is download a VPN. Run the app or program, and it will change your IP to one wherever the VPN server is located. However, this will not make you completely invisible or untraceable.
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Tips
- While your device's IP address may change every time you turn it on, your router's IP address , or "default gateway," usually stays the same and determines the IP addresses of the other devices on your network.Thanks
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References
- ↑ https://docs.oracle.com/en-us/iaas/Content/Network/Tasks/managingpublicIPs.htm
- ↑ https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-server/administration/windows-commands/ipconfig
- ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/find-your-ip-address-in-windows-f21a9bbc-c582-55cd-35e0-73431160a1b9#Category=Windows_11
- ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/find-your-ip-address-in-windows-f21a9bbc-c582-55cd-35e0-73431160a1b9#Category=Windows_10
- ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/use-dhcp-or-a-manual-ip-address-on-mac-mchlp2718/mac
- ↑ https://support.apple.com/guide/mac-help/use-dhcp-or-a-manual-ip-address-on-mac-mchlp2718/mac
- ↑ https://ubuntu.com/tutorials/command-line-for-beginners#3-opening-a-terminal
- ↑ https://help.ubuntu.com/stable/ubuntu-help/net-findip.html.en
- ↑ https://it.okstate.edu/services/connectivity/ipv4-android.html
- ↑ https://it.okstate.edu/services/connectivity/ipv4-android.html
- ↑ https://it.okstate.edu/services/connectivity/ipv4-android.html
- ↑ https://ucdavisit.service-now.com/kb_view.do?sys_kb_id=063498196f082100bc4f8a20af3ee45d
- ↑ https://ucdavisit.service-now.com/kb_view.do?sys_kb_id=063498196f082100bc4f8a20af3ee45d
- ↑ https://ucdavisit.service-now.com/kb_view.do?sys_kb_id=063498196f082100bc4f8a20af3ee45d
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