How To Change Your IP Address

• Your IP address can tell the websites you visit your approximate physical location.
• Changing your IP address is easy. Connect to a VPN to route your online traffic to VPN servers and make it appear as if you’re browsing from somewhere else.
• Using a VPN more than just changes your virtual location. Read our NordVPN review to see all the privacy perks that come with our top-rated VPN.

Even though you may be in cyberspace, you’re still in a specific, virtual location defined by your IP address. But for those who want to stay private, get around government restrictions, and the like, changing your IP address is a simple first step. In this article, we’ll tell you how to change your IP address, step-by-step, along with providing you with more information about the types of IP addresses, the pros and cons of changing them, and more. Get your invisibility cloak ready because we’re about to go private or as private as you can be online.

See the exact steps to changing your IP address on an iPhone, Android, Mac and Windows computer. Also, learn why you would want to change your IP address in the first place.

How to Change Your IP Address on Windows Manually

1. Click Administrator Account.
2. Click Start.
3. Click Control Panel.
4. Click Network Connection.
5. Select Local Area Connection.
6. Click Properties.
7. Select TCP/IP.
8. Type in the IP address.

How to Change Your IP Address on Android Manually

1. Go to your Android Settings.
2. Navigate to Wireless & Networks.
3. Click on your Wi-Fi network.
4. Click Modify Network.
5. Select Advanced Options.
6. Change the IP address.

How to Change Your IP Address on iOS Manually

1. Go to your iOS device’s Settings.
2. Click Wi-Fi.
3. Click Network.
4. Select IPv4 Address.
5. Click Configure IP.
6. Enter your IP address.

How to Change Your IP Address on Router Manually

1. Turn off your router.
2. Turn it back on a day later.
3. Go to your administrative interface and reconnect to your ISP.

If you want your device to pick a new IP address for you automatically, here’s what to do.

How to Change Your IP Address on Mac Automatically

1. Go to your Mac’s System Preferences app.
2. Click Network.
3. Select Network Connection.
4. Click Configure iPv4.
5. Select Using DHCP.

How to Change Your IP Address on Windows Automatically

1. Enter your Administrator Account.
2. Click Start.
3. Click Control Panel.
4. Go to Network Connections.
5. Click Location Area Connection.
6. Click Properties.
7. Select TCP/IP.
8. Click Properties.
9. Click Obtain An IP Address Automatically1

How to Change Your IP Address on Android Automatically

1. Click Settings.
2. Select Connections.
3. Click Wi-Fi.
4. Select the network you’re on currently.
5. Click Advanced.
6. Select either DHCP or Static.

How to Change Your IP Address on iOS Automatically

1. Go to your iPhone or iPad’s Settings.
2. Select Network.
3. Select your network.
4. Click IPv4 Address.
5. Click Configure IP.
6. Choose Automatic.

If you don’t already have a new IP address or you don’t want one the automatic address from your device, then you can connect to a Virtual Private Network or VPN. VPNs will replace your IP address and encrypt all of your web activity. You may get the same IP address every time you connect (static), or a different one each time (dynamic). Some VPNs also offer dedicated IP addresses, if you want to be the only one with that address. With any VPN:

How to Change Your IP Address with a VPN

1. Download the VPN app.
2. Create an account.
3. Click Connect.

To learn more, read about the best VPN for every occasion or our comprehensive VPN guide.

A sister to VPNs is proxy servers, intermediary devices that hide IP addresses.2 Here’s how to connect to a proxy server on your Mac, Windows, Android or iOS device.

How to Connect to Proxy Server on Mac

1. Open Safari, Macs’ default browser.
2. Click Preferences.
3. Click Advanced.
4. Select Change Settings.
5. Update the Settings with the information that the network administrator provided in the System Preferences pop-up.

How to Connect to Proxy Server on Windows

1. Go to your Administrative Templates.
2. Select Windows Components.
3. Click Data Collection and Preview Builds.
4. Click Configure Authenticated Proxy Usage.
5. Select Disable Authenticated Proxy Usage.
6. Hit Apply.

How to Connect to Proxy Server on Android

1. Go to your Android’s Settings.
2. Select Wi-Fi.
3. Select your networks’ name.
4. Hit Modify Network.
5. Click Advanced.
6. Select Manual.
7. Enter in your proxy port and hostname.
8. Click Save.

How to Connect to Proxy Server on iOS

1. Enter your phone or tablet’s Settings.
2. Click Wi-Fi.
3. Click on the “I” button next to username.
4. Click HTTP Proxy.
5. Select Edit Proxy Settings.
6. Turn on Authentication.
7. Return to the previous window.

Tor

Tor is a secure browser that, along with hiding your IP address, will also prevent tracking and targeted ads. Once you’re off a website, its cookies will clear as will your browsing history. Both your IP address and your web activity will be encrypted not once, not twice but three times.3 Just download the browser from Tor’s website to hide your IP address when browsing online!

What Is An IP Address?

Of course, some people may not be totally clear on what an IP address actually is; no shame here! An IP address, which standards for an internet protocol address, is a device’s identifying number associated with a specific computer or network of computers. Basically, IP addresses let computers send and receive information, but they can also be used to track the physical locations of users,4 a nightmare for those concerned with privacy. And according to our VPN usage research, that accounts for 40 percent of VPN-users.

Types of IP Addresses

Not all IP addresses are created equal! Rather, they can be divided into a few different categories, some of which have certain advantages over others.

• Public: Each and every internet-connected device has a public IP address, distributed by the Internet Service Providers vis-à-vis the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. What, you haven’t heard of ICANN? Nevertheless, these public IP addresses are searchable on the web, which is why we can find our printer simply by Googling its IP address.
• Private/ local: In contrast to public IP addresses, private IP addresses aren’t searchable on the web. Rather, they’re numbers that routers assign the devices on their networks so that they can communicate with each other.
• Dynamic: Dynamic IP addresses, as we mentioned before, are any type of IP address that change every time you connect, usually through a VPN. This makes users hard to track online, as their literal address keeps changing.
• Static: Static means that the IP addresses do not change. With VPNs, static IP addresses are usually shared with thousands of users in order to obscure their identities. However, some websites block these shared IP addresses, which necessitates users getting dedicated IP addresses. What a convenient transition!
• Dedicated: Dedicated IP addresses are assigned to only one user rather than being shared by several. They usually cost a different fee on top of the regular VPN subscription.

• IPv4: Internet Protocol version 4 is used by 99 percent of networks, but since it can only store 4.3 billion addresses, it’s being replaced by IPv6, which we’ll get to in a second. Unlike IPv6, IPv4 addresses are four one bite numbers separated by dots like 555.555.1.1.
• IPv6: While they’re only used by less than 1 percent of networks, IPv6 has its advantages over IPv4, namely that it can provide an infinite number of addresses. It also allows for larger payloads and is compatible with a greater number of mobile networks. Although they’re starting small, eventually, IPv6 will replace IPv4.5

Where To Find Your IP Address

Feeling lost in the sauce? Finding your IP address isn’t that complicated, even if you’re not a tech expert like us.

Where to Find Your IP Address on Mac

1. Enter your Mac’s System Preferences.
2. Select Network.
3. Select your Wi-Fi network.
4. Click Advanced.
5. Select TCP/IP.
6. Look where it says IPv4 Address.

Where to Find Your IP Address on Windows

1. Enter your TaskBar.
2. Click on Wi-Fi Network.
3. Select your network.
4. Click Properties.
5. Look under IPv4 Address.

Where to Find Your IP Address on Android

1. Enter your phone’s Settings.
2. Click About.
3. Click Status.
4. Look at the IP Address.

Where to Find Your IP Address on iOS

1. Click Settings.
2. Click Wi-Fi.
3. Click on the “I” button next to Network.
4. ILook under IPv4 Address.

Pros and Cons of Changing Addresses

Of course, there’s always the debate of whether or not to change your IP address in the first place. While the angel on your shoulder tells you it’s a great way to increase your privacy and access other country’s servers, the devil tells you that it could be costly, that some websites won’t work and that your ISP will still be able to see your address. There’s truth to both of these sides, so we recommend making your decisions on a case-by-case basis. That being said, we broke down the main reasons why you should and shouldn’t change your IP address.

Conclusion

Overall, we’re of the faith that changing your IP address is a necessity at times, and we love that there’s more than one way to do it. We hope we answered all of your questions about changing your IP address, but if we didn’t, read on.