How to Change Your IP Address: Public vs Local

To change the IP address websites see, change the internet connection or the route your traffic takes. Changing a laptop's local Wi-Fi address is a different task. Decide which address you need to change first, then verify the result rather than assuming a restart worked.

Choose the right method · Public IP · Local IP · Verify the change

Which problem are you solving?

• A website needs to see a different connection: work on the public IP or VPN route.
• A printer or local device has an address conflict: work on the local network's address assignment.
• A lookup shows the wrong city: use the location correction checklist first. A new address is not a guaranteed location fix.
• You need a stable address for an allowlist: ask the relevant network provider about a supported static address. Rotating it can break the access you want to preserve.

Our public vs private IP guide explains why changing a private IPv4 address behind a router does not, by itself, replace the public address websites see.

Options for the public address

Try a different network

Switch between home Wi-Fi and mobile data, or another network you are permitted to use. Then check the result in the same browser. An always-on VPN or proxy can keep the visible exit address unchanged even when the underlying network changes. Switching connections can interrupt downloads, calls and remote sessions.

Ask your internet provider about reassignment

The provider controls the address assigned to your connection. Ask whether it is dynamic, static or shared, and whether a new assignment is available. A router reconnect can receive the same address again; “turn it off for five minutes” is not a universal rule. DHCP includes ways to retain or reuse allocations, not a requirement to issue a different address every time. See RFC 2131.

Use a normal restart only when appropriate for your connection. Do not factory-reset the router just to try for a new IP: that can erase settings without changing the provider's allocation.

Route the browser or device through a VPN

A VPN can make traffic appear from a different exit address without changing the address assigned to your home connection. Coverage depends on the app and routing configuration. It is a trust decision, not automatic anonymity; the EFF's VPN guide explains that trade-off. Our VPN address guide shows what to compare before and after connecting.

Changing a local address on Windows or Mac

For a local connectivity problem, first check whether the adapter uses automatic DHCP or a manual address. Microsoft recommends DHCP for easier management in its Windows TCP/IP settings instructions. Avoid inventing a manual address: you also need the correct subnet and gateway, and an address that will not conflict with another device.

On Mac, Apple's DHCP renewal instructions describe renewing the lease through the connection's TCP/IP settings. Renewal may help a connection problem but does not promise a different address. On a work or school device, use the network administrator's configuration.

These operations normally concern the local adapter on a home network. They should not be presented as a guaranteed way to change your router's public IPv4 address.

Verify the address that matters

1. Before the change, privately note the public address shown here, the connection and whether the result is IPv4 or IPv6.
2. Make one change at a time, wait for the connection to be ready, then reload the check in the same browser.
3. Compare like with like. A change from an IPv4 result to an IPv6 result is not proof that the original IPv4 allocation changed. Read why both families can exist.
4. Retest the service you were trying to use. An IP change does not remove account restrictions or fix every connectivity problem.