How to Find My Public IP / Exit IP / Gateway IP — Full Platform Guide

1. The Difference Between the Three IPs — Stop Confusing Them

Internet (public)
      ↓
      ← ① Public exit IP (e.g. 1.2.3.4, assigned by your ISP)
      ↓
[ Home router ]
      ↓
      ← ③ Gateway IP (e.g. 192.168.1.1, the router's own LAN address)
      ↓
[ Your computer / phone ]
      ↓
      ← ② Private IP (e.g. 192.168.1.5, assigned by the router)

2. Finding Your Public Exit IP — the Easy Part

2.1 One click in your browser (recommended)

Just open the cleanip.io homepage — we instantly show yourdual-stack exit(IPv4 and IPv6 shown together), along with geolocation, ASN, and a reputation score. No third-party ad tracking, no data collection.

Other options: ip.sb / ifconfig.me / icanhazip.com / ipinfo.io / ip138.com (popular in China).

2.2 From the command line (for developers / servers)

$ curl ifconfig.me
1.2.3.4

$ curl -4 ifconfig.co      # force IPv4
1.2.3.4

$ curl -6 ifconfig.co      # force IPv6
2001:db8::1

$ dig +short myip.opendns.com @resolver1.opendns.com
1.2.3.4

2.3 Note: you may have both an IPv4 and IPv6 exit

Home broadband in China (e.g. China Telecom) has IPv6 enabled by default, and browsers prefer IPv6 when both are available. So a "what's my IP" tool may return an IPv6 address when you expected IPv4 — thisis not a leak, it's normal dual-stack behavior. To see your IPv4 exit specifically, visit an IPv4-only domain in your browser (ipv4.ip.sb).

3. Finding Your Private IP / Gateway IP — by Platform

3.1 Windows

C:\> ipconfig

Windows IP Configuration

Ethernet adapter Ethernet:
   Connection-specific DNS Suffix . :
   IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.5    ← private IP
   Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
   Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1    ← gateway IP

PowerShell users: Get-NetIPConfiguration | Format-Table InterfaceAlias, IPv4Address, IPv4DefaultGateway

3.2 macOS

$ ifconfig en0     # en0 is Wi-Fi; en1 is usually wired
en0: flags=8863<UP,BROADCAST,SMART,RUNNING,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> mtu 1500
    inet 192.168.1.5 netmask 0xffffff00 broadcast 192.168.1.255
    inet6 fe80::aede:48ff:fe00:1122%en0 prefixlen 64 scopeid 0x4

$ route -n get default | grep gateway
   gateway: 192.168.1.1            ← gateway

$ networksetup -getinfo Wi-Fi      # friendlier output
DHCP Configuration
IP address: 192.168.1.5
Subnet mask: 255.255.255.0
Router: 192.168.1.1

Graphical interface: System Settings → Network → your current Wi-Fi → Details → TCP/IP — the "Router" field is your gateway.

3.3 Linux

$ ip addr show          # private IP
2: enp3s0: <BROADCAST,MULTICAST,UP> mtu 1500
    inet 192.168.1.5/24 brd 192.168.1.255 scope global enp3s0
    inet6 fe80::aede:48ff:fe00:1122/64 scope link

$ ip route | grep default
default via 192.168.1.1 dev enp3s0 proto dhcp metric 100

$ hostname -I            # compact form, shows only the private IP
192.168.1.5

3.4 iOS (iPhone / iPad)

• Settings → Wi-Fi → tap theⓘinfo button next to your current Wi-Fi network
• "IP Address" = yourprivate IP
• "Router" =gateway IP(your router's LAN IP)
• "Subnet Mask" is usually 255.255.255.0

3.5 Android

• Settings → Wi-Fi → long-press your current Wi-Fi (or tap the gear icon) → Modify network → Advanced
• "Gateway" / "Gateway IP" is the router's IP
• The exact path varies by Android brand (Xiaomi / Huawei / Samsung); search for "Gateway" or "IP settings"
• Or use a third-party app that shows it directly:Wi-Fi Analyzer / Fing

4. Special Cases

4.1 I have a VPN on — my public IP should be the VPN's exit

With a full-tunnel VPN (TUN mode), your public exit IP equals the VPN server's IP. But watch out forleaks:

• WebRTC can expose your real IP — check with /leak our leak test
• If dual-stack IPv6 is only partially routed through the VPN while IPv4 is tunneled, browser IPv6 traffic can bypass the VPN — you'll see an IPv6 exit matching your ISP
• HTTP/SOCKS proxies (non-TUN) don't handle UDP — WebRTC, QUIC, and video call traffic can all leak

See the complete guide to VPN tracing for details.

4.2 My home network is on CGNAT — the router's WAN IP is 100.64.x.x

Log in to your router and check the WAN IP. If it's in the 100.64.0.0/10 range, your ISP has put you behind CGNAT and youdon't have a real public IPv4 address. To do port forwarding or expose services, call your ISP and request a public IP (usually free). See the CGNAT self-check guide for details.

4.3 Multiple network adapters / multiple ISPs — which one is the "real" exit

If your home has both Wi-Fi and Ethernet connected, or your Windows laptop has a USB network adapter plugged in, several adapters may each have an IP — but only the one on yourdefault routeis actually used as the public exit.

• Windows:route printcheck the Gateway on the "0.0.0.0" row
• macOS / Linux:route -n get default / ip route | grep default

4.4 I'm on public Wi-Fi / a shared network — the public IP is shared via NAT

The exit of a cafe / hotel / public Wi-Fi network isshared by the entire network — hundreds of people may share the same public IP at once. This is often why sites throttle you, force a CAPTCHA, or block you outright due to low reputation. Use the cleanip.io homepageto check the reputation score — below 60 means caution is warranted (common on public Wi-Fi).

4.5 My IPv6 looks like fe80::... — is my network broken?

fe80::/10 is alink-local address, present on every IPv6 network interface —it is not a public IPv6 address, it's only valid within its own subnet. To find a public IPv6, look for one starting with 2xxx:... (a global unicast address). fe80 with no global IPv6 means your ISP hasn't assigned you one.

5. Command Quick Reference