Whenever you need to troubleshoot an issue with your internet network, it’s important to know your IP address. However, there are different IP addresses for your computer and router, as well as public IP addresses for your devices. To make things easy, here’s everything you need to find your computer’s IP address and your router’s IP address on a Mac.
What Is an IP Address?
An IP (Internet Protocol) address is a unique string of numbers that identifies all devices connected to the internet and your local network. Basically, an IP address is kind of like a mailing address: it’s what allows packets of information to be delivered to the right devices.
There are two types of IP addresses: private and public. A private IP address is assigned to devices in your local area network (like your WiFi network), while public IP addresses are assigned to devices connected to the wide area network (the greater internet).
Read More: What is an IP address?
Basically, you can think of a private IP address like an apartment number and a public IP address like the building’s street address. That’s why your router might have the exact same private IP address as other routers, but you should keep your public IP addresses a secret.
The steps on how to find IP addresses on your Mac depend on your computer’s model and which version of macOS you have installed.
How to Find Your Computer and Router IP Address On a Mac
To find your IP addresses on a Mac, click the Apple icon in the top-left corner of your screen and go to System Settings. Then go to Network and select WiFi or Ethernet. Finally, select your network and click Details to find the local IP addresses for your computer and router.
- Click the Apple icon in the top-left corner of your screen.
- Then select System Settings.
Note: If you see “System Preferences” instead of “System Settings,” skip to the next section on How To Find Your Router’s IP Address on an Older Mac.
- Next, select Network. You will see this in the left sidebar of the System Settings window.
- Then select Wi-Fi or Ethernet. You can see which connection you have by looking for the option that says “Connected.”
- Next, click Details to the right of your network. Make sure you are connected to the right WiFi network. If not, you can quickly change to a different network by hovering your mouse over it and clicking Connect.
- Finally, you will see your Mac’s IP address followed by your router’s IP address. These will both be private IP addresses from your local network.
How to Find Your IP Address On an Older Mac
To find your IP address on an older Mac, go to System Preferences > Network and select your connection in the left sidebar. Then click Advanced > TCP/IP and you will see your computer’s IP address next to IPv4 Address and your router’s IP address next to Router.
- Click the Apple icon in the top-left corner of your screen.
- Then select System Preferences.
- Next, click Network.
Note: You can also access your network preferences by clicking on the WiFi symbol in the top-right corner of your screen. Then select Network Preferences.
- Next, select Wi-Fi or Ethernet. You should select Wi-Fi for wireless connections or Ethernet for wired connections.
Note: If you are just looking for your computer’s IP address, you can find it here in the upper-right corner.
- Then click Advanced.
- Next, click the TCP/IP tab. This is the second tab from the left at the top of the window.
- Finally, you will find your computer’s IP address next to IPv4 Address and your router’s IP address next to Router.
How To Find Your Mac’s Public IP Address
To find your Mac’s public IP address, you can go to whatismyipaddress.com or search Google for “what is my IP address.” However, it’s important to note that this IP address should be kept a secret because it can be used by criminals to access your device from outside your network.
Now that you know how to find your computer’s IP address and router’s IP address on a Mac, check out our article on how to change your WiFi name and password on a Mac.
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