Most websites don’t need a dedicated IP address. A shared IP works fine for SEO and for SSL on modern browsers.
A dedicated IP helps in a few specific cases: sending email from your own server, getting through a firewall allowlist, or connecting to your server by IP.
If none of those apply to you, skip the add-on.
IP addresses sit among the networking basics of web hosting. First comes how a server uses its addresses, then what that changes for your site.
What is a dedicated IP address?
A dedicated IP address is an internet address assigned to your hosting account or server alone, rather than shared with other customers’ sites.
Every server on the internet has at least one IP address, such as 198.51.100.7. When someone types your domain, DNS looks up that address, and the browser connects to it.
On shared hosting, one server address usually answers for many domains. The browser tells the server which domain it wants, and the server sends the right site.
Shared vs dedicated IP: how they differ
The only technical difference is whether other domains answer at the same address. Speed, storage, and security settings stay the same.
| Shared IP | Dedicated IP | |
|---|---|---|
| Who uses the address | Many sites on the same server | Only your account or server |
| Typical cost | Included | Included on some cloud and VPS plans, or a paid add-on |
| Reach your site by typing the IP | No, the server can’t tell which site you want | Yes |
| Email reputation of the address | Shared with other senders | Yours alone |
| Firewall allowlisting by IP | Opens the door for every site on that IP | Only your server |
For your site, this means: a dedicated IP changes who else lives at your address. It doesn’t make pages load faster on its own.
Myths about dedicated IPs
Two reasons hosts often give for buying a dedicated IP, SEO and SSL, no longer hold up for most sites.
Myth 1: a dedicated IP improves SEO
In our view, a dedicated IP alone isn’t a reason to expect better rankings. Your content, links, speed, and technical health are what search engines evaluate.
Google’s Search Central documentation, checked October 4, 2026, doesn’t address shared IP addresses, so we don’t attribute a position to Google.
Treat any host’s SEO claim for dedicated IPs as that host’s claim.
Myth 2: you need a dedicated IP for SSL
You don’t. A technology called Server Name Indication (SNI) lets one IP address serve many SSL certificates.
SNI is a TLS extension defined in RFC 6066, section 3.
The browser sends the domain name at the start of the secure connection, so the server knows which certificate to show.
Before SNI was widely supported, each HTTPS site typically needed its own IP. That’s why older hosting guides still link the two.
How certificates work is covered in what an SSL certificate does.
For your site, this means: free SSL on a shared IP is normal. Don’t pay for a dedicated IP just to get HTTPS.
When a dedicated IP is worth it
A dedicated IP earns its cost when another system judges, filters or connects to you by IP address.
You send email from your own server
Mail providers judge senders partly by the reputation of the sending IP.
Gmail’s email sender guidelines say “the activity of any senders using a shared IP address affects the reputation of all senders for that shared IP address”.
The same guidelines require the sending IP to have a matching reverse DNS (PTR) record. On your own IP, you or your host can set that record for your domain.
Note the difference: this is about the IP that sends mail, not the IP your website uses.
If you send through Google Workspace, Microsoft 365 or a newsletter service, their IPs do the sending, and your web server’s IP doesn’t matter for mail.
A partner or firewall allowlists your IP
Some payment gateways, APIs, company networks and databases only accept connections from approved IP addresses.
If your server shares an IP, approving it also approves every other site on that address. Some partners won’t allow that.
You connect by IP
FTP, SSH or a remote database connection sometimes needs a fixed address for your own server.
A dedicated IP also lets you reach your site by IP before DNS points at the new server, which helps during a migration.
Certain software requires it
Some apps and licences are tied to a fixed IP address. If a vendor asks for one, check before you buy the hosting plan.
For your site, this means: if one of these cases fits, a dedicated IP solves a real problem. If not, it’s an add-on you won’t use.
What a dedicated IP costs
On many cloud and VPS plans a dedicated IP is included, while some providers charge a small monthly fee for each IPv4 address.
Prices below were rechecked on October 4, 2026.
- Hostinger Cloud Startup lists a dedicated IP on its cloud hosting page. The Cloud Startup account we bought has one.
- ScalaHosting managed cloud VPS includes a dedicated IP, according to its managed cloud page.
- Hetzner Cloud charges €0.50 or $0.60 a month for a primary IPv4 address and gives IPv6 free, per its IPv4 pricing docs.
Some providers bill each IPv4 address separately. Vultr’s pricing page, for example, lists an IPv6-only version of its smallest plan. The Hetzner Cloud review covers that provider’s other costs.
On shared hosting, a dedicated IP is usually a paid add-on, if it’s offered at all. Check the host’s add-on price before you assume it’s cheap.
For your site, this means: if you need a dedicated IP, a VPS or cloud plan that includes one is often simpler than adding one to a shared plan.
The VPS plans compared by real cost and the cloud hosting plans we compare show what each includes.
Do you need a dedicated IP? A quick checklist
Answer these questions. If every answer is no, a shared IP is fine.
- Do you send email from your own web server, not from Google Workspace, Microsoft 365 or a mail service?
- Has a payment gateway, API or partner asked you to provide a fixed IP to allowlist?
- Do you connect to a remote database, FTP or SSH service that only accepts approved IPs?
- Does software you run require a fixed IP for licensing?
- Do you need to reach your site by IP, for example during a migration?
One or more yes answers means a dedicated IP is worth pricing. Ask whether your plan includes one before you pay for an add-on.
Frequently asked questions
Does a dedicated IP make my website faster?
No. Speed depends on the server’s CPU, memory, storage, caching and location. Changing to a dedicated IP doesn’t change any of those.
Does a dedicated IP help SEO?
There’s no good reason to expect it to. Rankings depend on your pages, links and site health.
Google hasn’t published a position on shared IPs in its Search documentation.
Do I need a dedicated IP for an SSL certificate?
No. SNI lets one IP address serve many certificates, so free SSL works on shared IPs.
Is a dedicated IP the same as a dedicated server?
No. A dedicated IP is an address, while a dedicated server is a whole physical machine.
This guide to what a dedicated server is covers the second. You can have a dedicated IP on a VPS or cloud plan.
Can a bad neighbor on a shared IP hurt my email?
Yes, if your mail is sent from that shared IP. Gmail says other senders’ activity affects the reputation of everyone on a shared IP.
Using a separate email service avoids the problem.
How we researched this
The email facts come from Gmail’s sender guidelines, rechecked October 4, 2026, which set the rules on shared-IP reputation and reverse DNS.
The SNI explanation follows its defining standard, RFC 6066, section 3, read October 4, 2026.
Provider facts for Hostinger, ScalaHosting, Hetzner and Vultr are from their official pages, rechecked October 4, 2026.
We could also confirm Hostinger’s dedicated IP firsthand, on the Cloud Startup account we bought in November 2025.
Provider claims and our own account data are labeled as the HostingGuider editorial method requires.
