The IPCombo Blog
Guides & explainers
In-depth guides on IP, WebRTC, DNS, proxy routing, and the regional quirks of the major services we test.
What is my IP address, and why every checker tells you a different one
Your IP address is the public identifier every website uses to send data back to you. But the IP you see depends on who's answering — and modern networks often have more than one. Here's what an IP actually is, what each tool measures, and how to read the disagreement.
2026-09-237 min readHow to check if your VPN is actually working (and not silently leaking it)
A VPN client shows a green icon and says 'connected'. That tells you the tunnel is up — not that your traffic is actually going through it. DNS, WebRTC, IPv6, and per-route splits can each leak independently. Here's the four-stage check that proves a VPN is doing its job.
2026-09-236 min readHow to judge the IP class (datacenter / residential / mobile) and read the ASN
Every IP belongs to an organization identified by an ASN. The ASN tells you the IP class. Datacenter ASNs are blacklisted by most streaming and AI; residential pass; mobile is the gold standard. Here is how to look it up and read it, with examples.
2026-09-237 min readArchive
Older posts, in reverse-chronological order.