What Is My IP Address? IPv4 vs IPv6 Explained

Updated 27 September 2026 · 6 min read

Your IP address is the number the internet uses to send data back to you. Most people actually have several at once: a private address for each device at home, one public address shared by the whole household, and often an IPv6 address as well. This guide explains which is which, how to find each one, and what an IP address does and doesn't reveal.

Public vs private IP addresses

Your router gets a public IPv4 address from your internet provider. Every device behind it (laptop, phone, TV, printer) gets a private address from the router, usually handed out automatically by DHCP.

Private addresses come from three ranges set aside in RFC 1918:

  • 10.0.0.0/8 (10.0.0.0 to 10.255.255.255), common in offices
  • 172.16.0.0/12 (172.16.0.0 to 172.31.255.255)
  • 192.168.0.0/16 (192.168.0.0 to 192.168.255.255), used by most home routers

These ranges are reused in millions of homes, so they can't be reached directly from the internet. When your laptop at 192.168.1.23 opens a website, the router swaps in its public address and keeps a table so the reply comes back to the right device. This is NAT (network address translation), and it is why every device on your Wi-Fi shows the same public IP.

Some providers, especially on mobile networks, go further and share one public IPv4 address between many customers. This is carrier-grade NAT (CGNAT). If your router's WAN address falls between 100.64.0.0 and 100.127.255.255, you are behind it: that block, 100.64.0.0/10, is reserved for this by RFC 6598. It matters for port forwarding.

IPv4 vs IPv6, and why you might have both

IPv4 addresses are 32 bits, written as four numbers from 0 to 255, such as 203.0.113.45. That allows about 4.3 billion addresses. IANA handed the last free blocks to the regional registries in 2011, which is why NAT is everywhere.

IPv6 addresses are 128 bits, written as eight groups of hexadecimal, such as 2001:db8:4f2a:1c00:8d3e:22ff:fe19:7b10. Leading zeros in a group can be dropped, and one run of all-zero groups can be replaced with ::, so 2001:0db8:0000:0000:0000:0000:0000:0001 becomes 2001:db8::1.

Most modern networks run dual stack: your device has an IPv4 address (behind NAT) and one or more IPv6 addresses at the same time. When a website supports both, your browser tries both and uses whichever connects first, often IPv6. That is why an IP checker can show two different addresses. If you only see IPv4, your provider, router or device doesn't have IPv6 switched on. Nothing is broken.

In the UAE, Etisalat (now e&) started rolling out IPv6 to eLife home customers in 2018, and the UAE government portal says TDRA works with both e& and du to spread IPv6 on their networks. Whether you get it depends on your plan and router settings.

With IPv6 there is usually no NAT: each device gets its own globally unique address, and the home router still blocks unsolicited incoming traffic by default. Windows, macOS, iOS and Android also use temporary IPv6 addresses that change regularly for privacy, so the address you see today may be different tomorrow.

Dynamic vs static addresses

Most home connections get a dynamic public IP. It can change when the router reconnects or the provider's lease expires, though it often stays the same for weeks. A static IP never changes and is usually sold as a business add-on. You need one to host a server, run a site-to-site VPN, or connect to a supplier who only accepts a whitelisted address.

Inside your network, addresses are dynamic too. For a printer or NAS that needs a fixed address, create a DHCP reservation in the router rather than typing a static IP on the device, so two devices never clash.

How to find your local (private) IP address

Windows: open Command Prompt or PowerShell and run ipconfig. Under your Wi-Fi or Ethernet adapter:

  • IPv4 Address. . . . . : 192.168.1.23 is your private address.
  • Subnet Mask . . . . . : 255.255.255.0 is the size of your network (see Subnetting Made Simple, or work it out with the Subnet Calculator).
  • Default Gateway . . . : 192.168.1.1 is your router, where its admin page lives.

ipconfig /all adds the MAC address, DHCP server and DNS servers. Without the command line, go to Settings > Network & internet > Wi-Fi (or Ethernet), open your network and look for IPv4 address, as in Microsoft's guide.

macOS: choose Apple menu > System Settings > Network, click Wi-Fi or Ethernet, then Details > TCP/IP (Apple's steps). In Terminal, ipconfig getifaddr en0 prints the address of interface en0, which is Wi-Fi on most MacBooks; try en1 if it prints nothing.

Phones: on iPhone, go to Settings > Wi-Fi and tap the info button next to your network. On Android, open the connected Wi-Fi network's details; the exact menu varies by manufacturer. On Linux, use ip addr or hostname -I.

What your IP reveals: location and privacy

Every website you visit sees your public IP. Location lookups use commercial databases that map address blocks to places. The result is usually the city where your provider's network is registered or routed, not your building, so seeing a neighbouring city is normal. Mobile data and VPNs are often further off, sometimes in another country.

An IP address on its own doesn't give anyone your name or street address. Your provider does know which customer had which address at a given time, and can be required to share that through legal process.

A VPN replaces your address with the VPN server's, so sites see the VPN provider instead of you, and your own provider only sees encrypted traffic to the VPN. VPN rules differ by country; in the UAE, check the current TDRA guidance first. This is general information, not legal advice.

Check your public IP with our tool

Your public address can only be seen from outside, by asking a server where your request came from. The IP Checker does exactly that and shows your public IPv4 address, your IPv6 address if you have one, the approximate city, region and country, your time zone, your internet provider and a small map of the approximate area. Treat the map as "roughly this area", not a pin on your home.

Three useful checks:

  • Open it on Wi-Fi, then on mobile data. You'll see a different address, and often a different provider.
  • Open it with your VPN connected to confirm the VPN is working.
  • With the VPN on, compare both lines. If IPv4 shows the VPN but IPv6 still shows your home provider, the VPN isn't covering IPv6. Turn on the app's IPv6 or leak protection setting.

Frequently asked questions

Why does my IP address keep changing?

Home connections normally use dynamic public addresses that change when the router reconnects. On IPv6, your device also rotates temporary addresses on purpose for privacy.

Why does the IP Checker show the wrong city?

Location comes from databases that map address blocks to where the provider's network is registered, so a nearby city is normal. VPNs and mobile data can be much further off.

Can someone hack me just by knowing my IP address?

It lets someone try to connect, but a home router blocks unsolicited connections by default. The real risks are forwarded ports and outdated router firmware, so open only what you need and keep the router updated.

Why don't I have an IPv6 address?

Your provider, plan, router or device may not have IPv6 enabled. Check the router's WAN or internet settings for an IPv6 option. Everything still works over IPv4.

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