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How To Check the IP Address of a Website: Additional Information

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Hey there! So, you want to find out the IP address of a website? Maybe you’re curious about where your competitor’s site is hosted, or you’re troubleshooting DNS issues, or you just want to check out and see who’s behind the curtain. Well, good news: it’s not rocket science, but there are some cool tricks and tools you’ll want to know. 🕵️‍♂️

Why Bother Checking the IP of a Website?

SEO Sleuthing: Find out if your sites are on the same server, or if your PBN is leaving footprints. 👣
Troubleshooting: Is your site down? Is it a DNS issue, or is the server actually toast?
Security: Spot shared hosting with dodgy neighbors, or check if a site is using a CDN like Cloudflare to hide its real IP.
Curiosity: Because, let’s be honest, who doesn’t want to know what’s going on under the hood?

How To Check the IP Address of a Website (Like a Pro)

Let’s get our hands dirty! There are a bunch of ways to grab the IP address of a website. Here are the most popular (and practical) methods:

1. The Classic Command Line Way

Open up your terminal (Mac/Linux) or Command Prompt (Windows). Type:

ping example.com

This will send a few packets to the server and show the IP address in the output. Example:

Pinging example.com [93.184.216.34] with 32 bytes of data:
Reply from 93.184.216.34: bytes=32 time=20ms TTL=54

Note: Some sites block ICMP (ping), so if you get “Request timed out,” don’t panic! Try nslookup or dig instead.

Using `nslookup` (Windows, Mac, Linux):

nslookup example.com

Output:

Non-authoritative answer:
Name:    example.com
Address: 93.184.216.34

Using `dig` (Mac, Linux):

dig example.com

Look for the “ANSWER SECTION” in the output. That’s your IP!

2. Online Tools (For the GUI Lovers)

Just pop in the domain, and you’ll get the IP plus some bonus info (location, ASN, even reverse DNS sometimes).

3. Browser Dev Tools (The Sneaky Way)

Open Chrome DevTools (F12 or right-click > Inspect), go to the Network tab, refresh the page, click on the main request (yourdomain.com), and look under Headers for the Remote Address. Voila!

4. Mobile Apps

On the go? Apps like Network Analyzer (iOS/Android) let you run DNS lookups from your phone.

How to Dig Deeper: Find ALL Possible Info About the Server

Alright, you’ve got the IP. But what else can you find out? Let’s go full Sherlock Holmes:

1. Reverse IP Lookup

See what other domains are hosted on the same IP. Useful for spotting shared hosting or PBNs.

Just enter the IP, and see a list of all domains sharing that server.

2. ASN and Hosting Provider

Who owns the IP? Which network is it part of?

Hurricane Electric BGP Toolkit (put in the IP address)
IPinfo again (shows ASN, org, country, etc.)

3. Geolocation

Find out where the server is physically located. Sometimes this matters for SEO or legal reasons.

Note: Geolocation isn’t always 100% accurate, but it’s usually close enough.

4. Check for CDN or Proxy Protection

If the IP belongs to Cloudflare, Sucuri, or another CDN, you’re seeing a proxy, not the “real” server IP. To check:

Look up the IP in IPinfo – does it say Cloudflare?
Check the HTTP response headers in DevTools. “CF-” headers = Cloudflare.

If you need the origin IP (for pen-testing or advanced SEO), that’s a whole other (and ethically tricky) topic!

5. WHOIS Lookup

For IPs, not domains! This tells you who owns the IP block.

whois 93.184.216.34

Or use DomainTools or ARIN.

6. Traceroute

See the path packets take from you to the server. Useful for network debugging and sometimes for geo info.

tracert example.com   (Windows)
traceroute example.com   (Linux/Mac)

Examples: Real-World Scenarios

SEO Audit: You want to make sure your money sites and PBNs aren’t on the same IP. Use reverse IP lookup to check.
Moving Hosts: After a migration, use dig to confirm your domain resolves to the new server’s IP.
Uptime Monitoring: Your site is down. Ping the IP directly – if it responds, it’s probably a DNS issue.
Competitor Research: See if your competitor is using a cheap shared host by checking how many domains share their IP.

Bonus: Common Mistakes, Myths, and Tips

Myth: “Every website has a unique IP.” Nope! Shared hosting is everywhere. Hundreds of sites can share one IP.
Beginner mistake: Trusting ping alone. Many servers block ICMP. Always double-check with nslookup or online tools.
Myth: “IP geolocation is always accurate.” Not really – it can be off by hundreds of miles. Use as a rough guide only.
Tip: If you see a Cloudflare IP, you’re only seeing the proxy. The real server IP is hidden (unless you have DNS leaks or misconfigs).
Tip: For big sites, there may be multiple IPs (load balancing, CDNs). Use dig +short example.com to see all A records.
Myth: “Changing IPs will boost SEO.” Not unless you’re fixing a specific problem (like escaping a bad neighborhood IP range).

Conclusion: Why, How, Where?

Knowing how to check a website’s server IP is a must-have skill for SEOs, webmasters, and sysadmins. It helps you:

Debug issues faster
Protect your SEO assets
Spy (ethically!) on competitors
Understand your hosting environment better

Next time you’re troubleshooting, auditing, or just plain curious, whip out those command-line tools or online services and start digging. The web is full of secrets, and a website’s IP is just the start! 🕸️🔍

Happy hacking! (And remember: with great power comes great responsibility. Don’t use these tricks for evil. 😇)

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