MyIP.dogFind the right Windows IP address first
For the public address a website sees, open the IP checker on the Windows computer you want to check. For the local Windows IP address used on your home or office network, open Settings, choose Network & internet, and inspect the connected network. These values can differ because they describe different parts of the connection. You do not need to install an app, change adapter settings or restart the router to read either value.
A Windows IP address is useful only when you know its purpose. A printer setup usually needs an address on the local network. A support team configuring an internet allowlist usually needs the public source seen by its service. Before copying a number, ask which task you are completing and whether the recipient expects IPv4 or IPv6. Keep the adapter name beside the result if several connections are active.
Check your Windows IP address in Settings
On Windows 11, open Start, then Settings, then Network & internet. Select Properties beside the connected network, or choose Wi-Fi and the connected network. For a wired connection, choose Ethernet. Read the IPv4 address field and any IPv6 fields shown. Microsoft documents these paths in its network settings guide.
On Windows 10, use Settings and Network & Internet, then the active Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection and its properties. Exact labels can vary with the installed release. The Windows IP address you want belongs to the connection carrying your traffic now, rather than a remembered wireless network or an unplugged dock. Treat a disconnected adapter as a separate item, even if it still has saved configuration.
Reading a Windows IP address does not require selecting Edit beside IP assignment. That control changes configuration. Leave automatic assignment unchanged while gathering information. A manually entered address that belongs to another device can create a conflict, and an incorrect gateway can disconnect the computer. First record what is present; only make a configuration change when you understand the network's intended settings.
Read a Windows IP address with Command Prompt
Open Start, search for Command Prompt, and run this read-only command:
ipconfig
Find the adapter that matches your active connection. Its IPv4, IPv6, subnet and default gateway fields describe local configuration. For additional details, use ipconfig /all. The Microsoft command reference explains the output and options. You normally do not need an administrator window just to inspect this information.
Do not add /release when your goal is to read a Windows IP address. That option discards DHCP configuration and can interrupt connectivity. /renew and /flushdns are also different operations, not requirements for finding an address. Copy the relevant adapter section rather than treating every number in a long report as interchangeable.
Inspect a Windows IP address with PowerShell
PowerShell provides a structured view through another read-only command:
Get-NetIPConfiguration
Without extra parameters, this returns configuration for connected, non-virtual interfaces. Use Get-NetIPConfiguration -All when investigating virtual, loopback or disconnected adapters as well. To examine an interface identified in the output, use its actual index with Get-NetIPConfiguration -InterfaceIndex 12; the number 12 is only an example. These behaviors are documented in Microsoft's PowerShell reference.
The Windows IP address beside an interface is still an interface observation. It is not a measurement of what every remote website receives. A local configuration report and a browser check complement each other: one explains the computer's interfaces, while the other observes a particular outgoing request. Neither should be silently substituted for the other in a support ticket.
Match the Windows IP address to an adapter
A laptop can have Wi-Fi, Ethernet, a VPN, virtual machines and container networks at the same time. Several populated adapter sections are therefore normal. Start with the connection you recognize, then consider whether a tunnel carries the destination you are investigating. A Windows IP address on a virtual switch may be relevant to a virtual machine while being irrelevant to your browser's internet connection.
For a Windows IP address example, suppose Wi-Fi has 192.168.50.24 and its gateway is 192.168.50.1. The first value identifies the computer on that example LAN; the second identifies its next-hop router. They are not alternative spellings of the same device. A separate public result from the browser can be correct at the same time. This example does not prescribe values to enter on your own network.
Understand a private Windows IP address
An IPv4 value in 10.0.0.0/8, 172.16.0.0/12 or 192.168.0.0/16 is private-use space. Such a Windows IP address can be reused in many unrelated homes and businesses. It does not identify your household globally. Our public versus private guide explains why NAT can make several local devices share one public source.
A Windows IP address beginning with 169.254 has a different meaning: IPv4 link-local addressing. On a network where DHCP is expected, it is a reason to inspect connectivity and assignment, not proof that your ISP changed your public address. Loopback values such as 127.0.0.1 refer to the local host. Preserve these distinctions when describing the problem to someone else.
Compare a Windows IP address across protocols
Your computer may show several IPv6 values, including a link-local value and one or more global addresses. A Windows IP address containing colons is not corrupted IPv4. The protocols have different notation and can follow different paths. Use the IPv6 test to check the browser's actual reachability to the test endpoints, with its stated limitations.
The Windows IP address selected for one connection may differ from the source selected for another destination. Temporary IPv6 addresses can also change while the computer remains connected. When comparing observations, keep the family, browser, network and time consistent. A changing suffix alone does not establish that the entire household network has moved or that a device has been compromised.
VPNs and your public Windows IP address
A VPN may make a website see a tunnel exit instead of the normal provider exit. With split tunneling, only some destinations or applications use that path. Therefore, one Windows IP address check cannot prove that every application uses the same tunnel. Record the VPN state and test the application or destination involved in the actual support issue.
If a corporate VPN is required, follow its support process before changing it. Disconnecting may interrupt work resources or expose a request outside the intended tunnel. A useful Windows IP address comparison records the baseline, the authorized changed state and the observation time. Do not describe a single successful browser request as a comprehensive VPN privacy audit.
Share a Windows IP address with enough context
A concise support report includes the relevant address, IPv4 or IPv6, adapter name, whether the result came from Settings or the browser, and the approximate observation time. Explain the symptom as well: a local printer is unavailable, a remote allowlist rejects access, or the public result changed after joining a VPN. Those details turn a bare Windows IP address into evidence someone can act on.
Avoid posting a complete configuration dump publicly when a single adapter result would answer the question. Such reports can include internal names and unrelated network details. To confirm the public Windows IP address, return to the homepage, compare the public observation with the local Windows IP address you recorded, and use the difference to choose the next step. Finding an address should leave your working network configuration intact.