Why am I getting an IPv6 address only?

Quick answer

You check your connection and see an IPv6 address but no IPv4 — or a site that needs IPv4 won’t load. This is increasingly common as networks move to IPv6, and it’s usually fine. Here’s what’s happening and how to troubleshoot.

Why might you be IPv6-only?

The world ran out of IPv4 addresses, so many carriers — especially mobile networks — now provision IPv6 as the primary protocol and provide IPv4 only through a translation layer when needed. So on mobile data or a modern fibre connection, seeing IPv6 first (or only) is by design, not a fault.

Check what you actually have

Our homepage shows your IPv4 and IPv6 when each is present. If only IPv6 appears, your network is giving you IPv6 connectivity and reaching IPv4 sites through carrier translation (NAT64/464XLAT) behind the scenes. Most things work transparently through that.

When does IPv6-only cause problems?

Trouble appears with services that only speak IPv4 and aren’t reached through your carrier’s translation — an old game server, a legacy device, or peer-to-peer connections expecting an IPv4 address. Hosting a game server is the classic case: friends on IPv4 can’t reach your IPv6-only address.

Troubleshooting steps

If an IPv4-only service won’t connect: confirm whether your connection has any IPv4 (check the homepage); on dual-stack networks, restart the router to re-request both protocols; check that IPv6 isn’t disabled or misconfigured on your device; and on mobile, try toggling airplane mode to re-attach. If you genuinely need IPv4 for hosting, contact your ISP — some offer IPv4 on request or a different plan.

Should you disable IPv6?

Usually no — IPv6 is the future and most connections run better with it on. Disable it only to troubleshoot a specific IPv4-only app, and re-enable it afterwards. For the difference between the protocols, see IPv4 vs IPv6 explained.