What Is My IP Address?

An IP address is the address given to every device that connects to the internet, and it's what makes sure data reaches the right place. It usually belongs not to your device but to the connection your internet provider has allocated to you at that moment, and on most home connections it changes from time to time.

Not directly. An IP address shows your internet provider and your approximate region; it doesn't show your name, your address or who you are. Only your provider can link it to a specific subscriber, and they share that only in response to a legal request.

IP geolocation databases show the registered center of the network the address was allocated to, which is often your provider's exit point rather than the city you are actually in. The gap is larger on mobile connections and corporate networks. That isn't a fault; it's how the method works.

IPv4 addresses are four numbers, like 192.0.2.1, and they are running out. IPv6 offers a far larger pool and is written like 2001:db8::1. The two systems run side by side today; which one you see depends on your connection and on whether the site you're visiting supports it.

No. Your IP, browser and language details already reach the server with every request; here they are simply printed to the screen. The location lookup does go to a third-party database, and we only do that if you press the button. No result is saved.

With a VPN, the sites you visit see the VPN server's IP rather than your own, and that's the address this page shows too. Your browser, screen and time zone details don't change, which is why a time zone that doesn't match the VPN's location can give it away.