How to Find Your IP Address (External and Internal)

Every device on a network has two IP addresses: an external (public) address that the internet sees, and an internal (private) address used inside your home or office network. You can find both in seconds. Your external IP is assigned by your internet provider; your internal IP – usually something like 192.168.1.42 – is assigned by your router.

What an IP address is

An IP address is a numeric label that identifies a device on a network, much like a postal address identifies a building. When you open a website, your request carries a return address so the reply knows where to come back to. Without it, devices on a network could not tell each other apart and data would have nowhere to go.

Two versions are in use today. IPv4 addresses look like 203.0.113.24 – four numbers from 0 to 255. Because IPv4 allows only about 4.3 billion unique addresses, and the world now has far more connected devices than that, a newer version called IPv6 was introduced with a vastly larger pool. Most home networks still run on IPv4 day to day, which is the format you will see most often.

Why you have two IP addresses

The two-address system is a direct result of that IPv4 shortage. There are not enough public addresses for every phone, laptop, and smart device, so your provider assigns one public address to your whole connection. Your router then creates a private network behind it and gives each device its own internal address, translating between the two with a mechanism called NAT (Network Address Translation).

In practice, the internet only ever sees your router’s single public address, while the devices in your home talk to each other using private ones. This is why the two addresses serve different purposes: the external IP is how the outside world reaches your connection, and the internal IP is how you identify and manage individual devices on your own network.

External vs internal IP: what is the difference

• External (public) IP – the single address your whole network presents to the internet. Websites, game servers, and remote-access tools see this one. It is assigned by your ISP and shared by every device behind your router.
• Internal (private) IP – the address your router gives to each device on the local network. These come from the reserved ranges defined in RFC 1918 (10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12, 192.168.0.0/16) and are not routable on the public internet.

At a glance:

• Who sees it – external: the whole internet; internal: only devices on your own network.
• Assigned by – external: your ISP; internal: your router, via DHCP.
• Example – external: 203.0.113.24; internal: 192.168.1.42.
• How often it changes – external: often (dynamic); internal: rarely.

How to find your external (public) IP address

The fastest way on a phone is a network utility app:

1. Open IP Tools (Android) or WiFi Tools (iOS).
2. The IP Info screen loads automatically as the default view.
3. Read the External IP field near the top.
4. Tap Refresh to re-check it – your ISP can reassign it.

You can also open the My IP page in any browser to see your public address instantly.

How to find your internal (local) IP address

1. Open IP Tools or WiFi Tools and stay on the IP Info screen.
2. Find the Internal IP (or “Local IP”) field – it looks like 192.168.x.x or 10.x.x.x.
3. The same screen also shows your gateway (your router’s address) and subnet mask.

On Windows you can run ipconfig in Command Prompt – the “IPv4 Address” line is your internal IP. A phone shows both addresses on one screen, with no commands to type.

When you need each address

• External IP – setting up remote access, hosting a game server, confirming a VPN changed your address, or giving support staff the address your connection uses.
• Internal IP – connecting a smart TV or IP camera, opening your router’s admin panel, assigning a fixed address to a device, or identifying which device is which during troubleshooting. For a deeper look at any device on your network, the IP Finder tool resolves details for any address.

FAQ

What does 192.168.0.1 mean?
It is a private address from the RFC 1918 range, most often used as the default gateway – your router’s own address inside the local network.

Why is my internal IP different from my external IP?
Your router uses one public IP for the whole network and hands out separate private IPs to each device through NAT (Network Address Translation).

Does my IP address change?
Your external IP is usually dynamic and can change when your router reconnects. Internal IPs can also change unless you reserve a static address in your router.

How do I find my router’s IP address?
It is the “gateway” value shown on the IP Info screen – commonly 192.168.0.1 or 192.168.1.1.