Wikipedia:IP users
 | As of 4 November 2025, information on this page is obsolete. Wikipedia no longer uses IP addresses to associate edits with users not logged in. See temporary accounts for the current system. |
 | This is an information page. It is neither an encyclopedia article nor one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines; rather, its purpose is to explain certain aspects of Wikipedia's norms, customs, technicalities, or practices. It may reflect differing levels of consensus and vetting. |
Before 4 November 2025, IP users were guest or unregistered users who edited Wikipedia without being logged into an account. The term "IP user" came from the fact that when such a user edited, Wikipedia annotated the edit with the IP address of the computer from which the edit was made, whereas if the user were logged in, it would instead show the username of the editor who made it. This system was replaced on 4 November 2025 by temporary accounts so the IP addresses of unregistered users are no longer publicly displayed.
The edits of unregistered users prior to 4 November 2025 still have their IP address publicly displayed, and may have the following general forms:
- IPv4:
x.x.x.xwhere each x is a number between 0 and 255 - IPv6:
y:y:y:y:y:y:y:ywhere each y is a number between 0 and 65535, written in hexadecimal
IP user edits are estimated to constitute one-half (54% in 2013) of the general username activity levels. So, among the total daily edits, then about one-third are posted by IP users, while 2/3 (~67%) are logged to specific usernames each time.[clarification needed]
While registered editors only occasionally possess one or two legitimate alternate usernames, IP users frequently contributed from different IP addresses because Internet service providers (ISPs) usually assign IP addresses dynamically, meaning that the same actual person may have returned to Wikipedia with a different IP address that was re-assigned by the ISP. This often made it difficult to tell whether an IP user was a total newcomer or a returning editor. Another factor was that multiple people could use the same IP address (via network address translation), such as students at a school or employees at a business.
Although IP addresses are no longer automatically visible, they continue to be used behind the scenes. Temporary account IP viewers can see the IP addresses used by temporary accounts. CheckUsers are able to see the IP addresses for any editor. These data are only retained for a limited time, and are covered by the Access to Temporary Account IP Addresses Policy and Access to Nonpublic Personal Data Policy respectively. IP addresses (and those using them) can still be restricted from editing by blocks and edit filters.
See also
[edit]About IP addresses in general
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About editing Wikipedia with or without an account
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- Advice for parents – A brief introduction to Wikipedia for parents and legal guardians.
- Contributing to Wikipedia – A page that explains how and where you can help Wikipedia.
- Deleting and merging accounts – A page that explains why it is not possible to delete user accounts and the alternatives available.
- Personal security practices – A page that explains how caution should be used when posting personally identifiable information online.
- Privacy, confidentiality and discretion – A page that explains how your rights to privacy may not extend as far as you believe.
- Request an account – A page that explains how any editor may request an account be created for them.
- Why create an account? – A part of the FAQ that talks about the reasons to edit as a registered user.
- Why not create an account? – A page that talks about the reasons to edit as an IP.
- Wikipedia is in the real world – A page that explains how activity here on Wikipedia has consequences in the real world.