WHAT IS MY IP ADDRESS? [WINDOWS, MACOS, LINUX/UNIX]

What is my IP address and how can I find it? Oh, if I could get a penny every time I heard this question. IP stands for Internet Protocol and in simple terms is a numerical label assigned to your computer in order to communicate with other computers in a network.

Many guides on this website require knowing your IP address so let’s learn how to find our IP address on Windows 10, macOS, Linux/UNIX operating systems.

Without further ado, let’s get started.

What Is My IP Address [Windows 10]?

There are a few ways to get your IP address in Windows 10 and all are equally simple. In this section, I will show you two of the most commonly used two methods.

METHOD A:

Click on the Network Internet Access icon on the bottom-right side of your taskbar [Figure 1.1].

Figure 1.1: Find Network Internet Access in Windows

Click on the Network & Internet settings option. The Network & Internet Settings window will open [Figure 1.2].

Figure 1.2: Open Network Internet Access in Windows

On the Network & Internet Settings window, select the Status option on the left side menu [Figure 1.3].

As you can see, my Windows computer is connected to the network via the Ethernet port. In your case, your computer might be connected via WiFi. Regardless, the method works the same.

Figure 1.3: [What is my IP address in Windows] Network Status

On the Status window, click on the Properties button [Figure 1.4].

Figure 1.4: Network Properties in Windows

Scroll down on the Properties page until you find the IPv4 Address field under the Properties section. Your IP address should be listed there [Figure 1.5].

Figure 1.5: Find IP Address in Windows

METHOD B:

On the Windows Search Bar type “cmd” [without quotes].
Click on the Command Prompt icon listed in the Best match [Figure 1.6]

Figure 1.6: Find IP Address in Windows

On the Command Prompt window, type the following command and look for the IPv4 Address field.

ipconfig

Your IPv4 IP address is located on the right side of this field as seen in Figure 1.7 below:

Figure 1.7: Find IP address in Windows using command line

What Is My IP Address [macOS]

In this section, we are going to learn two ways to find the IP address on macOS. Feel free to use the method you find most convenient.

Method A:

Click on the Apple logo located on the top left of your desktop and select System Preferences as seen in Figure 1.8

Figure 1.8: System Preferences on macOS

In the System Preferences window, locate and click the Network icon [Figure 1.9]

Figure 1.9: [System Preferences] Network

Select your network interface. Please note that your computer might show multiple interfaces [Ethernet or Wi-Fi]. On the right side, you will see the IP address assigned to your network interface as seen in Figure 1.10 below.

Figure 1.10: What is my IP on macOS

Method B:

Open a Terminal window by clicking on the Search icon on your macOS top bar and typing “Terminal” in the search box. Click on the Terminal icon as seen in Figure 1.11 below.

Figure 1.11: Open Terminal on macOS

Alternatively you can launch the Terminal utility from Applications -> Utilities -> Terminal.

On the Terminal window, type the following command:

ifconfig | grep "inet " | grep -v 127.0.0.1

Look for your IP address in the inet filed as seen in Figure 1.12

Figure 1.12: Find IP in macOS using Terminal

NOTE: The above command will filter out all the unnecessary gibberish and provide only the information we need to identify our IP address.

What Is My IP Address [Linux/UNIX]

Open a terminal and execute the following command with the output shown in Figure 1.13.

ifconfig | grep "inet " | grep -v 127.0.0.1

Figure 1.13: What is my IP address in Linux/UNIX

Alternatively, you can use one of the following commands to find your IP address on Linux/UNIX – if you know what you’re looking for:

ifconfig

Figure 1.14: What is my IP address in Linux and UNIX

ip addr

Figure 1.15: Find IP address Linux and UNIX

ip -4 addr

Figure 1.16: Find IP address Linux and UNIX

Before You Leave

Finding an IP Address is a crucial “must know” for anyone willing to venture into the rewarding world of ethical hacking. Chose your method of finding a computer’s IP and make sure you remember it.

Ready to start your journey as ethical hacker? Here are two guides [with practical examples] to start with:

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Stay safe!

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Leonard Cucos

Leonard Cucos is an engineer with over 20 years of IT/Telco experience managing large UNIX/Linux-based server infrastructures, IP and Optics core networks, Information Security [red/blue], Data Science, and FinTech.