You public IP address is the address visible from exterior your network. Most people don't need to know their IP address except for very specific reasons, only fortunately, it's extremely easy to figure out.

Yous might need your public, or external IP address, when you're remoting into your calculator when away from home, or when you're sharing files from your FTP server, or connecting your network to a custom DNS service.

No affair the reason for needing to know your IP address, in that location are multiple ways to find information technology. You can utilise anything from a simple website to notice your IP accost to your calculator's command line utility or your router.

IP Address Finding Websites

The easiest mode to detect your external IP accost is most definitely to employ a website dedicated to doing simply that. These websites are using their own tools to locate your IP address, and they're just one click abroad from helping you.

Hither'south a list of several websites that can find your public IP address:

  • Google
  • icanhazip.com
  • IP Chicken
  • What Is My IP Accost
  • IP-Lookup.net
  • WhatIsMyIP.com
  • IP Location Finder

Tip: Some of these websites bear witness other helpful information, besides, such as your web browser, your local IP address, and even your concrete location.

Detect Your IP Address From the Command Line

Windows users can use a DNS request within Command Prompt to locate their public IP accost. Just open Command Prompt and execute this command:

              nslookup myip.opendns.com. resolver1.opendns.com

You'll first run into results from the DNS server but then another set of results at the bottom. Your IP address is listed below the line that says Proper name: myip.opendns.com.

If you get any kind of error when running this command, try doing just opendns.com. (remove the myip.), which should give you the IP address of opendns.com. Then run the command once more using the myip. part in the front end.

A like command tin can be used to observe your public IP address in PowerShell:

              $tmp =Invoke-WebRequest -URI                            http://myip.dnsomatic.com/

After entering that command, enter $tmp.Content to run into the result.

If you're using Linux, try this control from a final window:

              dig +short myip.opendns.com @resolver1.opendns.com

Locate the IP Address From Your Router or Modem

Your router and modem is what sits between your device and the internet, so it needs to know the IP address your ISP has assigned to your network. This means yous can use your own device to find your public IP address.

Finding the external IP address from a modem or router is not every bit piece of cake as using the methods above, merely it's definitely possible. The problem with this method is that you need to know how to log in to your router to see all the settings, which is something many people don't normally do because they don't know their password or the router'south IP address.

Most routers can exist accessed via the http://192.168.1.1 URL, just others use a different private IP accost. Once y'all know the right accost for your router, yous need access to the router'south login data so that you tin can access the administrative console.

If you've made information technology this far, finding the IP address should exist relatively easy. Yous can look in a section like Device Info, Management, Setup, WAN, etc. The IP address itself might be called WAN IP address, External Address, Public IP, or something of that sort.

How to Stop Your IP Address From Changing

Considering of the way ISPs assign IP addresses, your public IP address volition probable change at some point in the futurity. This ways that the address you find using one of the methods above, will not be the same address you observe a few weeks from now, or maybe even sooner.

While you, as a customer of your ISP, can't technically force your IP address to stay the same, you lot tin implement what'southward called a dynamic DNS service to essentially create that upshot.

A dynamic DNS service assigns a name to your IP address, while at the aforementioned time updating its tape of what your IP address is. Information technology does this each time the address changes, effectively giving you one hostname (like a website URL) that you tin can employ to refer to your public IP address.

In one case you lot've assigned yourself a hostname, yous can access your network at any fourth dimension through that proper noun, which in plow is actually accessing your network through the public IP accost. Again, you lot don't need to know your new IP address each time your ISP changes it because the service does that for you. All you need is the hostname!

Can You lot Alter or Hibernate Your IP Address?

Past default, your public IP address is visible by nearly anyone. Each website you visit can meet information technology, your ISP knows what it is, and people snooping on your network from the street tin can figure it out. What'southward the all-time way to hide or mask your IP address?

A VPN, or virtual private network, is by far the easiest and near effective manner to go on prying eyes from seeing your public IP address. What a VPN does is create a tunnel from your network to the VPN service, thereby preventing your Isp or anyone on your local network from spying on you.

What this does is forcefulness the website you're on to see the VPN's address instead of your ain, which basically hides your identity on the internet. That is, and then long as the VPN service doesn't reveal your IP address to anyone, which is why you lot wanted to option a trusted VPN provider.

There are lots of VPNs to cull from, both gratis and paid. Some have more or ameliorate features and privacy than others, so be sure to take your time researching the all-time VPN services before choosing one to hide your IP accost. If y'all demand to, make sure to check that the VPN connection is actually encrypted before moving forwards with a subscription.

See our listing of VPN apps yous can utilise to protect your privacy while on a desktop or mobile device.