How Accurate Is IP Geolocation?
IP geolocation is good at the country level and rough everywhere below that. If a map shows you in the wrong town, the database is doing its best with limited information, not reading your GPS.
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How it works
Companies build databases that map ranges of IP addresses to locations. They gather this from regional registries, ISP records, and clues like network routing. When you look up an IP, the tool returns the location on file for that range.
Why it's often off
- ISPs assign addresses from regional pools, so your IP may map to a hub city, not yours.
- Mobile networks route huge areas through a few gateways, so phones can appear far from where they are.
- VPNs and proxies move you to wherever their server is.
- Databases go stale as providers reassign address blocks.
How accurate is it really?
Country accuracy is typically well above 95 percent. City accuracy is much lower and varies by region and connection type. It's good enough to pick a language or a nearby store, but not to pinpoint a person.