Finding a website's IP address is useful for allowing access in a firewall, checking whether a domain already points to the new host, investigating a suspicious link or simply understanding where a service is hosted. There are three easy ways, and one important detail: many websites do not have just one IP.
1. With the online tool (the fastest)
Open the DNS lookup and type the domain, without https://. The A record shows the IPv4 address and the AAAA record shows the IPv6 address. The lookup goes straight to public resolvers, so you see the current value, without your computer's cache.
Once you have the IP, the IP lookup shows who it belongs to: provider, ASN and approximate location.
2. From your computer
Windows: open Command Prompt and type:
nslookup example.com
The "Address" line after "Name" gives you the IP. The ping example.com command also shows the IP on the first line, even if the site does not reply to ping.
macOS and Linux: in Terminal, use dig +short example.com or host example.com.
3. From your browser
In the developer tools (F12), Network tab, click the page's first request. "Remote Address" shows the IP the browser actually connected to. This is useful for confirming what your machine is using, cache included.
Why several IPs show up
Large websites often have more than one A record to split traffic across servers. Many also use a CDN (content delivery network), such as Cloudflare, Akamai or Fastly. In that case, the IP shown belongs to the CDN, not the origin server, and it may change depending on your location. This is normal behavior, not an error.
A hint that the site uses a CDN: the IP lookup shows Cloudflare or another CDN company as the provider, rather than a hosting company.
Why the IP changes
- The site moved to a new host: the A record was updated. During propagation, different people may see different IPs.
- CDN or load balancing: the answer varies by region or by query.
- Cloud: some services change their IPs often. To allow access, use the domain name whenever possible.
Does a website's IP show who owns it?
Not directly. The IP points to the company hosting the site or the CDN protecting it, not the person or company that owns the domain. For registration data, use WHOIS, which shows the registrar, dates and name servers.
What about an email server's IP?
The server that receives a domain's email appears in the MX record of the DNS lookup. It is usually different from the website's server, especially when email runs on Google Workspace or Microsoft 365.