By: Katia Belokon · Updated June 2026
What is IP geolocation?
IP geolocation is the process of estimating the physical location — country, region, city, and sometimes approximate coordinates — associated with an IP address. It does not use GPS, device sensors, or user-provided data. Instead, it relies entirely on network-level information: where IP address blocks are registered, where they are announced in BGP routing tables, and where major internet exchange points connect networks.
The primary source data for IP geolocation comes from Regional Internet Registry (RIR) records, which show which organization an IP block is registered to and the country of registration. Commercial geolocation databases (MaxMind, IPinfo, IP2Location) enrich this with additional data from network measurements, BGP announcements, and corrections submitted by networks themselves.
How does IP geolocation work?
IP geolocation databases maintain mappings between IP address ranges (CIDR blocks) and location data. When a geolocation lookup is performed on an IP address, the database finds which IP range contains that address and returns the associated location record.
The data comes from several sources:
- RIR registration data: ARIN, RIPE NCC, APNIC, LACNIC, and AFRINIC publish records of who holds each IP block and the country where they are registered.
- BGP routing announcements: The ASN that announces a prefix in BGP provides a signal about where that IP is routed.
- Network measurements: Traceroute data, latency measurements, and DNS round-trip times provide additional signals about where an IP is actually located.
- Self-reported corrections: Organizations can submit corrections to commercial databases when the registered and actual locations differ.
How accurate is IP geolocation?
Accuracy varies significantly by geography, connection type, and database quality:
- Country level: 90–95% accurate for most databases and IP types. Country-level geolocation is reliable enough for detecting obvious mismatches (e.g., a user connecting from a VPN in a different country).
- Region / state level: 60–80% accurate. Reasonable for major regions, less reliable for smaller administrative divisions.
- City level: 40–70% accurate. City-level geolocation is approximate. An IP may geolocate to the ISP's regional hub, which could be 50–200 km from the user's actual location.
- Coordinate level: Highly unreliable. Coordinates are typically the centroid of the estimated city or region, not the user's actual location.
Connection types that reduce accuracy: mobile broadband (traffic routes through central gateways), satellite internet (geolocates to the ground station), carrier-grade NAT (many users share one IP), and data center IPs (registered location differs from user location).
How VPNs change your visible geolocation
When you connect to a VPN, websites and IP lookup tools see the IP address of the VPN server, not your real IP. The geolocation result they receive corresponds to the VPN server's location — which can be in a completely different city, country, or continent to your actual position.
This is why VPNs are used to access geo-restricted content: a streaming service that checks your IP's country will see the VPN server's country rather than yours. It is also why running MyIPScan's IP Geolocation Lookup while connected to a VPN shows the VPN server's location.
However, geolocation is not the only way websites can determine your location. Browser Geolocation API, time zone settings, system language, and other signals can still reveal your actual location even with a VPN active. Use MyIPScan's Browser Fingerprint Test to see what your browser exposes beyond the IP layer.
Common reasons geolocation shows the wrong location
- ISP regional routing: Your ISP assigns you an IP from a block registered at their headquarters, which may be in a different city.
- Mobile carrier routing: Mobile traffic routes through central network points, so your IP may geolocate to a city far from you.
- Satellite internet: The IP geolocates to the ground station, not the satellite or your location.
- Carrier-grade NAT (CGNAT): Multiple users share a single public IP, and the registered location of that IP may not match any individual user's location.
- Data center IPs: Servers and VPN exit nodes may have IPs registered in one country but physically located in another.
Frequently asked questions
What is IP geolocation?
IP geolocation is the process of estimating the physical location (country, region, city) of an IP address using databases that map IP ranges to registered locations. It does not use GPS or device sensors — only network-level information.
How accurate is IP geolocation?
Country-level accuracy is 90–95% for most databases. Region-level is 60–80%. City-level is 40–70% and often off by tens of kilometers. Exact coordinates are highly unreliable. Mobile, satellite, and CGNAT connections further reduce accuracy.
Can IP geolocation find my exact home address?
No. IP geolocation cannot determine your exact home address. It estimates a location based on IP block registration data, which is typically the ISP's regional hub, not your physical address. Exact address determination from an IP alone is not possible via geolocation.
How does a VPN change my visible geolocation?
When connected to a VPN, websites see the VPN server's IP instead of yours. The geolocation result reflects the VPN server's location, which may be in a different country or continent. This allows VPN users to appear to be in a different country for geo-restricted services.
Why does my IP geolocation show the wrong city?
ISPs register large IP blocks at their headquarters or regional hubs, which may be in a different city than you are in. Mobile carriers route through central gateways, satellite links geolocate to ground stations, and CGNAT groups many users under one IP. All of these cause city-level geolocation to be off.