How to Find My IP Address on Mac (Public & Private)

This guide covers: How to Find My IP Address on Mac (Public & Private).

macOS gives you several ways to find your IP address, whether you need your public IP (the one websites see) or your private/local IP (assigned by your router). This guide covers both for macOS Ventura, Sonoma, and Sequoia.

Find your public IP address on Mac

Your public IP is the address the internet uses to reach your network. The fastest way to check it is on our homepage IP checker — it shows your IPv4 and IPv6 address, ISP, city, and ASN instantly.

You can also check from Terminal. Open Terminal (Cmd + Space, type Terminal) and run:

curl ifconfig.me

This prints your public IP. For more detail including ISP and geolocation, use our IP location tool.

Find your local (private) IP address on Mac

Your local IP is what your router assigns to your Mac inside your home or office network. It usually starts with 192.168, 10.0, or 172.16-31.

Method 1: System Settings (macOS Ventura and later)

1. Open System Settings (Apple menu > System Settings).
2. Click Wi-Fi (or Network if using Ethernet).
3. Click Details next to your connected network.
4. Your IP address appears under the TCP/IP tab, in the IP Address field.

Method 2: Terminal with ipconfig

Open Terminal and run:

ipconfig getifaddr en0

This returns your Wi-Fi IP. For Ethernet, use en1 (or whichever interface your adapter uses). If nothing prints, the interface is not connected.

Method 3: Terminal with ifconfig

ifconfig | grep "inet "

This shows all active IPv4 addresses on your Mac, including loopback (127.0.0.1). Your real local IP is the one that is not 127.0.0.1.

Method 4: Option-click the Wi-Fi icon

Hold the Option key and click the Wi-Fi icon in the menu bar. A detailed dropdown appears showing your IP address, router address, security type, channel, and BSSID.

Public IP vs private IP on Mac

Your public IP is shared by all devices on your network and is what websites see. Your private IP is unique to each device on your local network and is not visible to the internet.

Read our full public vs private IP guide for a deeper explanation.

Find your Mac address (not MAC address)

“Mac address” sometimes gets confused with “MAC address.” Your MAC addressis a hardware identifier for your network adapter, not your IP. To find it on macOS, go to System Settings > Wi-Fi > Details > Hardware, or run:

ifconfig en0 | grep ether

Learn more about MAC addresses in our MAC address lookup guide.

What to do after finding your IP

Once you know your IP, you can troubleshoot connections, set up remote access, or verify your VPN. Common next steps:

• Check if your VPN is actually protecting you
• Run a DNS lookup on your connection
• Check if your IP is on any blacklists
• Learn how to hide your IP address
• Find your router IP and access the admin panel