Your Mac has two IP addresses, and which one you need depends on what you're trying to do

Your Mac displays its IP address in System Settings under Network, and you can find it in under a minute. The address you see there is your local IP address — the one your home or office network uses to talk to your computer. If you need your public IP address instead (the one the wider internet sees), you'll need a different method. Most people looking for an IP address on their Mac need the local one, which is what you'll see first in System Settings.

The steps differ slightly depending on whether you're running macOS Sonoma, Ventura, or an older version, but the location is the same. You're looking for a number that looks like 192.168.1.something or 10.0.0.something — those are the ranges your home network uses.

Key Takeaways

  • Open System Settings, click Network on the left, then look at the IP Address field under your active connection — this is your local IP address.
  • Your local IP address changes only if your router reassigns it, which is rare for most home users; your public IP address changes when your internet provider reassigns it.
  • To find your public IP address instead, visit a site like whatismyipaddress.com or type "what is my ip" into a search engine.
  • If you need your IP address for troubleshooting, sharing files, or remote access, you almost always need the local address from System Settings, not the public one.

Finding your local IP address in System Settings

Click the Apple menu in the top-left corner, then select System Settings. On the left sidebar, click Network. You'll see your active connection listed — usually Wi-Fi or Ethernet. Click it, and the IP Address field appears on the right side of the window. That number is your local IP address.

If you're connected to Wi-Fi, you'll see the Wi-Fi option. If you're plugged in with an Ethernet cable, click Ethernet instead. The IP address field only shows up for whichever connection is currently active, so if you're on Wi-Fi but want to check your Ethernet address, you'd need to plug in the cable first.

Write down or screenshot this address if you need it for something specific — like setting up a printer on your network or accessing your Mac remotely from another device on the same Wi-Fi. This address is only meaningful to devices on your local network, not to the outside internet.

Using Terminal to check your IP address

If you prefer the command line, Terminal shows your IP address in a single command. Open Terminal (search for it in Spotlight by pressing Command+Space, typing "Terminal", and pressing Enter). Type ifconfig and press Enter. You'll see a wall of text — look for the section labeled en0 (for Ethernet) or en1 or en5 (for Wi-Fi, depending on your Mac model). Find the line that starts with "inet" followed by a space and a number. That number is your local IP address.

Terminal shows more detail than System Settings does, including your subnet mask and gateway address. Most people don't need this extra information, but it's there if you're troubleshooting network problems or setting up advanced configurations. The inet line is the one you want — ignore the inet6 line, which is for IPv6 addresses (a newer format that most home networks don't use yet).

Finding your public IP address

Your public IP address is what websites and services on the internet see when you connect to them. It's assigned by your internet service provider and is different from your local IP address. To find it, open any web browser and visit whatismyipaddress.com, or simply search "what is my ip" in Google. The result appears at the top of the search results.

You rarely need your public IP address for everyday tasks. You'd want it if you're setting up remote access to your Mac from outside your home network, or if a website or service is asking for it specifically. Your public IP address changes periodically — sometimes weekly, sometimes monthly — depending on your internet provider's setup. Your local IP address, by contrast, usually stays the same until you restart your router or your Mac.

Why you might need your IP address

The most common reason to find your IP address is to set up a device on your network, like a printer or security camera. These devices need to know your Mac's local address so they can communicate with it. Another reason is remote access — if you want to connect to your Mac from another computer while you're away, you'll need the local address if you're on the same network, or the public address if you're connecting from outside your home.

Troubleshooting network problems is another reason. If your internet isn't working or you're having connection issues, your IT support person or internet provider might ask for your IP address to help diagnose the problem. In that case, they usually want your public IP address, not your local one.

The difference between local and public IP addresses

Your local IP address is assigned by your router and is only used within your home or office network. Every device on your Wi-Fi has its own local IP address — your phone, your laptop, your printer, your smart speaker. These addresses start with 192.168, 10.0, or 172.16, which are ranges reserved for private networks.

Your public IP address is assigned by your internet service provider and is how the outside internet identifies your entire home network. All devices in your home share the same public IP address when they connect to the internet. This is why your router uses something called Network Address Translation (NAT) — it translates between your local addresses and your public address so the internet knows where to send data back to.

Think of it this way: your local IP address is like your apartment number inside a building, and your public IP address is like the building's street address. Someone inside the building uses your apartment number to find you. Someone outside the building uses the street address to find the building, and then the building's mail system routes it to your apartment.

What to do if your IP address keeps changing

Most home routers assign local IP addresses using something called DHCP, which automatically hands out addresses. Your Mac usually gets the same local address each time it connects, but it's not may provide. If you need your Mac to always have the same local address — for example, if you're setting up a printer to always print to a specific address — you can assign a static IP address in System Settings.

Open System Settings, go to Network, click your connection, then click Details. Look for the DHCP tab or IPv4 settings. You can manually enter an IP address instead of letting DHCP assign one. Choose an address in the same range as your other devices but higher than what DHCP typically assigns (for example, if DHCP assigns 192.168.1.1 through 192.168.1.100, use 192.168.1.200). Your router's manual or support page will tell you the safe range for your specific model.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is my IP address the same as my MAC address?

No. Your IP address is a number like 192.168.1.5. Your MAC address (Media Access Control) is a different identifier that looks like 00:1A:2B:3C:4D:5E. They serve different purposes — IP addresses route data across networks, while MAC addresses identify devices on the same local network. You can find your MAC address in System Settings under Network by clicking Advanced and looking for the Wi-Fi Address field.

Can someone hack me if they know my IP address?

Knowing your IP address alone doesn't let someone hack your Mac. They'd need to find an open port or a vulnerability in software you're running. Your Mac's firewall blocks incoming connections by default, which stops most attacks. If you're concerned about privacy, a VPN hides your public IP address from websites you visit, but it doesn't protect you from local network threats.

Why does my IP address show as 169.254.something?

That's a link-local address, which means your Mac couldn't reach your router or DHCP server. Check that you're connected to Wi-Fi or Ethernet, restart your router, and restart your Mac. If the problem persists, your router may not be assigning addresses correctly, or there may be a problem with your internet connection.

Do I need to hide my local IP address?

No. Your local IP address is only visible to devices on your home network, and hiding it would break network communication. Your public IP address is visible to websites you visit, but that's normal and expected. If you want to hide your public IP address from websites, use a VPN.