Have you traveled abroad and want to enjoy your local streaming services, tv channels or banking services? To do this, you will need to change your IP address. In this article, we will show you how to change your IP address from anywhere.
In the times that we exist in, with each passing day, more and more activities are taking online form. What is meant by this is that everything has started to operate through online channels, making the internet so important in modern times.
However, as you must be aware, online can also be a risky place to be if proper protective measures are not taken. Therefore, one must stay cautious all the time while using the internet, more specifically mask their identity to protect it from any potential infringement.
The majority of internet-connected devices transmit using IPv4 addresses, while IPv6 is gradually replacing IPv4 worldwide. To connect to and interact with other online devices, every internet-connected gadget needs a distinct IP address.
Although it may sound a little shady, altering your IP address is not just legally acceptable but also simple and can also improve your cybersecurity.
While each device has a distinct local IP address if you are currently connected to wifi you likely share a public IP address with other devices connected to the same wifi network. You may, however, have your own exclusive public IP address while you’re using your mobile data connection on your smartphone.
Most individuals refer to their public IPv4 address when they discuss altering their IP address. The majority of websites, servers, online games, and other internet-connected devices view and use your IP address for whatever reason.
Changing your IP address, whether it be IPv4 or IPv6, public or private, is what we attempt at guiding you through this article.
Note: This article is for educational purposes only. We or our team don’t force you to break the rules of any country.
Quick Guide: How to Change Your IP Address?
- Subscribe to a VPN. ExpressVPN(Get 49% off + 3 months extra off) is our top pick if you want to change your IP Address
- Download and Install the VPN app for your device.
- Log into your VPN app and connect to any VPN server like the US, UK or Canada.
- Now you have got a new IP address.
IP Addresses
Every gadget on a network can be identified by its IP address, which is a series of digits. To connect with each other across the internet and through other networks, computers utilize IP addresses.
Devices, routers, and websites can recognize themselves and transmit and receive information by using their IP addresses, which carry location information.
Why you should change your IP address
You can avoid hackers, snoopers, and other types of surveillance by changing your IP address. You’ll have multiple security and confidentiality benefits because you’re masking your real identity and where you are located. There are also additional advantages.
Online Privacy
Tweaking your IP address would conceal your geographical location, protecting you from cyber criminals, your ISP, as well as websites that employ web tracking. Changing your IP address will secure your online activities because it can be used to snoop on your personal internet usage.
Bypass site bans
Some governments may impose access restrictions on websites by using IP addresses to identify users. You may avoid detection by state censorship, unlock blocked websites, and gain access to a free and uncensored web by altering your IP address.
Obtain easy access to localized content
Geo-blocking makes it difficult to watch a match from your favorite sport when traveling or to view a program that is exclusively accessible in a few countries.
By tricking websites into believing you are from an authorized location, you could easily get past content restrictions by altering your IP address.
Fix internet problems
New routers frequently assign the incorrect IP address to gadgets. Your IP address can be manually changed to resolve this issue. It can also aid players who are having jerky gaming.
Keep in mind that changing your IP address is completely legal. You need not be concerned as long as you are not engaging in illegal activity.
Different ways of changing your IP address
Using a VPN to change your IP address
Virtual Private Network, or VPN, is the abbreviation for a service that conceals your connection to the internet and directs it to a server in a location that you select. Just the IP address of the VPN server, not your actual IP address, will be visible to sites, internet platforms, and other web-connected devices.
VPNs are helpful for torrent sites, accessing geo-restricted content from Netflix and BBC iPlayer, and getting around restrictions in places like businesses, schools, and countries like China.
The majority of VPNs can quickly conceal your IPv4 address, but many VPNs have security flaws that allow them to reveal your IP address. Additionally, not all VPNs can mask your IPv6 address. Pick a VPN that either disables IPv6 or has a built-in mechanism to stop IPv6 leaks.
Simply follow the straightforward instructions below if you’re unsure how to set up a VPN.
Here’s how to use a VPN to change your IP address:
- Join a reliable VPN provider. ExpressVPN is advised by experts.
- Get the right VPN app for your device by downloading it.
- If you wish to access a certain service, make sure to choose a server in a nation where it is not prohibited. Open the VPN app and choose a server within your own country.
- I’m done now! Your IP address ought to have changed by this point.
Using a Proxy
Proxies function in a similar way to VPNs but offer significantly less protection and adaptability. Your internet access passes through some kind of intermediary server such that internet sites as well as other online databases view the VPN connection’s IP address rather than your own.
Proxy servers frequently lack confidentiality, only impact specific programs, and therefore can disclose your IP address in various ways, in contrast to VPNs.
Several alternative proxies can be employed to change your IP address, including:
HTTP/S proxies
These are frequently either browser add-ons or particular websites that function as a browser inside a browser.
They don’t affect other programs or perhaps even DNS traffic; they just alter the IP address on transferring data between and within your browser. These are often referred to as SSL proxies if the encoding is present.
SOCKS proxies
The majority of online browsers can be customized to use SOCKS proxies, which are general-purpose proxy servers. The most updated version, SOCKS5, supports encryption.
SSH proxies
SSH proxies convert your IP address to one of the servers by routing internet activity from applications like your browser window through a Secure Shell (SSH) connection to a server.
SSH isn’t a particularly impressive protocol, and also many online platforms and programs might not function efficiently when connected even though encryption is incorporated.
Using Tor
The Onion Router, or Tor, is an encryption network that is managed entirely by volunteers. The Tor Browser, a basic web search engine that sends all internet traffic through the Tor network, is the simplest method for getting started with Tor.
Your connection is encrypted numerous times by Tor before it is sent through numerous nodes, which are servers run by volunteer Tor supporters. Whenever you visit a new website, a different set of nodes is used, each of which removes one encryption layer. Due to this, it is almost impossible to identify the origin of Tor traffic.
The IP address of the Exit Node, the final link in the chain, will be visible to internet sites.
Although Tor is completely free of cost, it has limitations. It is only truly suitable for simple browsing of the web and is rather slow. Even though using Tor is indeed not unlawful, because of its secrecy and frequent association with illegal activities on the deep web.
It may attract unnecessary attention from your ISP and potentially even enforcement of laws. When you are linked to Tor, those entities have no idea what you’re doing, however, they would be able to see that you are engaged on Tor nodes.
Unplugging you modem
By unplugging your wifi modem, waiting a short while, and afterward plugging it back in, you may well be able to obtain a new Internet Protocol address. Whenever this occurs, you give up control of your current IP address so that your ISP can reuse it. Your ISP issues you with a fresh IP address whenever you connect again.
Since your ISP might merely provide you with the very same IP address repeatedly, this strategy is really not guaranteed to be successful.
Nevertheless, the longer your router is unplugged, the more likely it is that your IP address will change. Definitely leave it disconnected overnight if just a few minutes of unplugging is ineffective.
For this to function, your ISP must employ dynamic IP addresses. Most do.
Getting the ISP to change the IP address
Answers may differ because each ISP has a distinct policy regarding how they manage these requests. You must have access to your account details and current IP address at the very least.
The majority of ISPs employ dynamic IP address systems, which means that as devices connect to and disassociate from the internet, IP addresses sometimes alter and are recycled. Please be aware that your updated IP address can change in the future.
You may be able to ask your ISP for a static IP address in specific circumstances, but you may need to submit an application and/or pay an additional price. Once you have a static IP address, you would be able to enter it in the network settings of your device. The only time a static IP address changes are if you manually alter it.
Switching Networks
Although it may seem apparent, you could obtain a distinct IP address by simply withdrawing from your existing network and joining a new one. For instance, if you are using a smartphone, you can change from one wifi connection to another or from wifi to a cellular data connection.
Keep in mind that open and public wifi networks are frequently among the top targets for attackers. Keep using a wifi connection that has WPA2 encryption and necessitates a password.
Obtain a new local IP address.
You can alter your private IP address through the router’s administrative interface or directly from the device if you have a connection to wifi or another sort of local network.
Following are the steps for renewing your IP address if you are using Windows:
Step 1: Look for the Command Prompt and select it with the right click Open with Administrator
Step 2: Enter ipconfig /release
Step 3: Enter ipconfig /renew
Now, a new local IP address ought to appear.
Following are the steps for renewing your IP address if you are using Mac:
Step 1: Select the Apple menu then click on System Preferences
Step 2: Choose Network
Step 3: Select the network with which you have a connection in the left pane
Step 4: Select the option Advanced
Step 5: Click on IP/TCP tab
Step 6: Select Renew DHCP Lease
Now, a new local IP address ought to appear.
How to change a mobile device’s IP address?
Switching the IP address on a tablet or mobile phone is simple. Having a VPN subscription is what you will need.
Following are the steps to do the same:
Step 1: Sign up for any reliable VPN. We recommend ExpressVPN which is secure and reliable.
Step 2: Download the VPN app on your mobile phone through Google Play Store in case of Android and App store in case of iOS device
Step 3: Log in to the app with your credentials
Step 4: Choose any suitable VPN server and connect to it
Step 5: Your device’s IP address will get changed the moment your VPN connection gets established
Your IP address is always known to your ISP
Regardless of what techniques you employ to alter or conceal an IP address, the internet service provider will always be aware of public IP addresses.
It’s unavoidable since your ISP can only give you an IP address before you can connect to the internet, and it needs to know this IP address in order to communicate with and send data to your device from the internet.
Your ISP is an exception to this rule and can see through the mask even if you adopted one of the ways mentioned above to hide your IP address from other devices, websites, and services on the internet.
However, you can mask your online behavior using encryption even if your ISP can identify you based on your IP address. With a VPN, all data is encrypted before it exits your device, meaning that while your ISP may be seeing that you’re communicating, they cannot determine what you are communicating about.
Consider switching between wifi and your smartphone’s mobile data connection if you need a quick method for changing your IP address to one of a different ISP. Your home internet and phone service provider likely use different ISPs.
Best VPNs For Getting New IP Address
There are a lot of VPNs in the market for changing your IP address. But some vpns among these work properly and safely. We are here to help you out with the list of the best VPNs which let you change the IP address.
ExpressVPN – Best VPN for changing IP address
ExpressVPN’s features at a glance
- Connect to servers in 94 countries.
- Unblock Netflix, Voot, SonyLiv, Prime Video, Hulu, and more
- Mask your IP address for privacy and anonymity
- Download apps for all your devices, including Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, routers, and more
- Use the split tunneling feature to select which device traffic you route through the VPN
- No activity or connection logs
- Bypass ISP throttling
- Use 5 devices simultaneously
- 30-days money-back guarantee
- Wide-ranging payment options including Bitcoin
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ExpressVPN is the best option if you require a VPN that provides excellent security as well as military-grade encryption. ExpressVPN takes user privacy seriously and was one of the first VPNs to remove their physical servers from India after the Indian government announced it would require VPNs to store and share customer data.
You can still get an Indian IP address by connecting to the India via UK) or India via Singapore) servers, but you’ll also get to avoid the data collection.
ExpressVPN maintains a strict policy of not collecting activity or connection logs, so your data will not be stored and no other party can request to access your data—making it completely private and secure.
OpenVPN, L2TP-IPsec, and IKEv2 protocols are used by ExpressVPN. These are popular for being the most reliable and safe security protocols. But ExpressVPN also has its own proprietary VPN protocol called Lightway, which is used by default in most cases for its superior speeds, reliability, and security.
ExpressVPN has server locations in 94 countries, with high-speed servers offering speeds of
up to 100Mb/s. It enables you to stream Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Disney+ and many more in ultra HD streaming quality.
ExpressVPN also provides you with a 30 days money back guarantee so you can easily get a full refund in case you find it doesn’t live up to expectations ówe’re pretty confident it will though!).
If you do run into any problems, you can contact their Support Team via live chat, which is
available 24/7.
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NordVPN
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NordVPN’s features in a glance
- Unblock Netflix, Roblox, Discord, Hotstar, Prime Video, MX Player, Voot, Hulu, etc
- Fast and secure Internet
- Strict no-logs policy
- 5200+ servers in 60 countries
- Connect up to 6 devices
- Onion Over VPN – Combine NordVPN encryption with anonymity.
- Multi-factor authentication
- Kill Switch will make sure your data will not be exposed.
- Split tunneling support
- Get a Dedicated IP address
- Mask your IP
- CyberSec to avoid Block ads and malware
- Lightweight Browser extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge
- No data leaks
- Stream sports live from official channels
- 30 days money back guarantee
It provides you with a high-security level and surety of zero IPv6/ DNS leaks which makes it one of the best and most used VPNs among the long list of VPNs available in today’s time. It could also provide you with Onion over VPN in case you require more security.
This VPN is known to be the all-rounder VPN with the availability of high-speed internet and a reasonable price.
One of its best qualities is the guarantee of 30 days for returning back the money which makes it riskless. In case you do not like the app after trying it, you could easily get 100℅ refunds.
CyberGhost
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Cyberghost features in a glance
- Unblocks Netflix, HBO Max, HULU, MX Player, Voot, and SonyLiv
- 7700+ VPN servers worldwide
- AES 256-bit encryption
- DNS and IP leak protection
- Automatic kill switch
- OpenVPN, IKEv2, WireGuard® protocols
- Strict No Logs Policy
- Unblock Netflix, Prime Video, Hulu, etc
- Connect Up to 7 devices protected simultaneously
- Apps for Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, etc
- 45-day money-back guarantee
CyberGhost VPN is available on Mac, Windows, Android, Linux, and iOS. It has as many as 7,700 presents in more than 110 locations. You can have up to 7 connections.
It is an excellent option if you want a VPN for torrenting. Even though it has several impressive features, it does not get any complicated to use.
As soon as you first use it, you will know why we recommend it for torrenting. The VPN is a feature to configure itself automatically for the purpose of delivering the best possible torrenting experience.
With CyberGhost, you will escape fussing with protocols. You will not have to test and try to find the best P2P technology. CyberGhost is aware of exactly what you like and wish to do, therefore, it will work in accordance.
The “Torrent Anonymously” option would make you feel more ensured of your safety and privacy. One of the most appreciated features of CyberGhost is it’s App Protection. It also has an incredible connection speed.
Conclusion
The above article covers in detail the need of changing the IP address of your device and also the different methods of changing it.
It has mentioned six different ways for doing so and explained them in proper steps which ensures that the users do not face any possible inconvenience while doing it.
These different methods of changing your IP address do not cost anything as they are completely free to perform. One of these different methods includes using a VPN to change the IP address.
Even though the users are allowed to change their IP address through free VPNs, it’s not advisable to do it because using free VPNs like all the other methods of changing IP addresses is not reliable. It causes a risk to your device and also to your online security.
Therefore, in order to safely change your IP address to be able to smoothly perform all the activities on the internet, you must not risk your online security and thus must get a paid subscription to any of the strong and reliable VPNs.
ExpressVPN has proved to be the ideal VPN for this task and you must go with it.
FAQs
Why do I receive CAPTCHA requests while changing IP addresses?
You can start receiving CAPTCHA requests if you change your IP address. This is due to the possibility that numerous other users also share the questioned IP address.
An internet service like Google notices an unusually large volume of queries coming from the same IP address. It then asks you to complete CAPTCHAs in an effort to confirm that you are a human and not a robot.
Can I change my IP address using free VPNs?
Technically, a free VPN will allow you to change your IP address. These services do have a few drawbacks that prevent them from being perfect.
For instance, free services typically have much higher user counts than their networks can handle as well as extremely low monthly bandwidth restrictions.
As a result, you might not be able to use the VPN as frequently as you would want and, when you can connect, you’ll have to put up with poor connections.
Is it prohibited to alter my IP address?
Your IP address can be changed without breaking the law. In fact, you don’t need to worry about breaking any laws when using a VPN in practically any nation on the globe.
No matter if you’ve used a VPN to disguise your IP, some internet activities are still prohibited. This includes downloading protected content via torrents or, in some nations, visiting betting websites.