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What is my IP address?
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What is an IP address?
An IP address (Internet Protocol address) is a numeric label assigned by your internet service provider. As it’s used to identify your device among billions of others, an IP address is a little like an online home address.
Here’s how an IP address directs data to its destination. First, you type in a website name (example.com) into the browser. However, your computer does not understand words — only numbers. So it first finds out the IP address of that website (example.com = 103.86.98.1.), finds it on the web, and finally loads it on your screen.
Why you should change your IP address
Gaming, streaming, browsing — whatever you do online, it will remain hidden from all third parties once you establish a VPN connection.
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How to find my IP address
Finding your IP address is pretty easy. Here are a few examples of how you can look it up.
How to find my public IP address
To find your public IP address, you can scroll up to the top of this page. It will show you your IP, the location you’re connecting from, your service provider, and whether or not your traffic is secured.
IPv4 vs. IPv6 addresses
How an IP address looks depends on the Internet Protocol version it’s using — IPv4 or IPv6.
IPv4
Most internet service providers still use IPv4. It’s based on 32 binary bits, consists of four numbers from 0 to 255, and is separated by dots. For example, 103.86.98.1.
However, IPv4 can generate only 4.3 billion unique IP addresses. That’s nowhere near enough in this digital age — IPv4 addresses will soon run out.
IPv6
IPv6 addresses are made up of 8 blocks of numbers. Each block is written as four hexadecimal digits and separated by colons. For example, 2400:BB40:1100:0000:0000:0000:0000:0001.
Number groups containing only 0 are often omitted to save space. Instead, a colon is added to indicate the gap. For example, 2400:BB40:1100::1.
Why hasn’t IPv6 been fully implemented yet?
Unlike the IPv4 protocol, IPv6 won’t ever run out of unique IP addresses — it can provide nearly 3.4×10^38 of them. Furthermore, some argue that IPv6 is a more efficient technology, providing better quality and connectivity.
However, IPv6 has not been fully implemented for two reasons:
- 1.
IPv6 isn’t backward compatible with IPv4. You can’t access IPv4 websites if your device runs on an IPv6 protocol.
- 2.
It’s hard to adopt the new technology without immediate gain. IPv4 still suits our needs, and until we reach its limit, a worldwide shift is unlikely.
Public vs. private IP addresses
Public IP, also known as an external IP, is the address provided by your internet service provider. Devices on the same network share this IP address when accessing the internet. For specific details, such as location, you can perform an IP lookup check. On the other hand, private, or local, IPs are assigned to each device on your network by your router. Take a look at the table below to understand the differences between public and private IP addresses better:
Public IP address | Private IP address |
|---|---|
| Used externally for communication over the internet | Used internally for communication within your home or office devices |
| Assigned by an ISP | Assigned by a local router or a DHCP server |
| Unique | Not unique and may be reused in other networks |
| Example: 4.4.4.4. | Example: 192.168.1.100 |
| Used to identify individual devices on the open internet | Used to segment a larger network into smaller subnetworks |
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