Does your business need a static IP address?

Dynamic versus static addresses

Every internet connection has a public IP address, which is how the rest of the internet finds it. On many plans that address is dynamic: it is assigned by the provider and may change after a router restart or periodically. A static IP is reserved for your connection and does not change unless you change provider or plan. For browsing, email and cloud apps, a changing address makes no difference. Your computers start the conversation with the cloud service, and replies come back automatically. The address only matters when something outside needs to find your office, or when someone needs to recognise traffic as coming from you.

When you do need one

Common reasons include a VPN that remote staff or other sites connect to, a camera system or NVR you view from outside without a cloud service, an onsite server or practice management system accessed from elsewhere, and remote access tools that connect directly. Some suppliers, banks or software vendors also restrict access to known IP addresses as a security measure.

Certain phone setups use a static IP, particularly older onsite phone systems connecting to a provider, and some security policies use it to restrict where staff can sign in from. If you run a website or email server from the office, which is rare now, you would also need one.

When you probably do not

If your business runs on Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, cloud accounting, cloud phones and cloud-hosted line-of-business software, you may not need a static IP. Modern cameras and alarms usually connect out to a cloud service, so you view them through an app without a static address. Remote access tools that connect via a cloud broker work without one too. Dynamic DNS services can also give a changing address a fixed name, which covers some light uses. They are less dependable than a true static IP for business systems, so use them for convenience rather than anything critical.

Security considerations

A static IP is not risky in itself, but whatever you open to the internet on that address will be found and probed by automated scanners quickly. Only open what you need, keep the firewall and anything exposed fully patched, and protect remote access with strong passwords and multi-factor authentication. Where possible, replace direct exposure with safer options. A cloud-managed VPN or zero-trust access service, or moving an onsite server to the cloud, often reduces the need for open ports altogether. Your IT provider can review which ports are open on your connection and whether each is still needed.

Costs and changing provider

Some business fibre plans include a static IP; others charge a modest monthly fee. Check when comparing plans. Note that a static IP belongs to the provider, so when you change provider or move to a backup connection, your public address changes. A static IP is also tied to your router's configuration. If the router is replaced after a fault, the new unit must be set up with the same address details, so keep those settings in your documentation rather than relying on the provider's default setup.

Before switching, list everything that depends on the current address: VPN settings, supplier whitelists, remote access, camera access, and any firewall rules elsewhere that trust your office. Contact each supplier with the new address in advance and schedule the change for a quiet time. During a failover to a backup connection, those same services may stop until the main connection returns, which is worth noting in your continuity plan.

Making the decision

Ask your IT provider or check your current firewall for anything that relies on inbound connections or whitelisting. If the list is empty, a dynamic address is fine. If there are one or two items, consider whether they can be moved to cloud-based alternatives before paying for a static IP indefinitely. If you do keep a static IP, record it in your network documentation along with what depends on it. Future you, or a new IT provider, will be grateful when the address next needs to change.

Larger offices sometimes need more than one address, for example to separate guest Wi-Fi from business traffic or to run several services that each expect their own address. Small offices rarely need this, but if a vendor asks for a block of addresses, ask them to explain why before ordering. Often a single static IP with sensible firewall rules does the same job at a lower cost and with less to maintain.