MAC Address Vendor Lookup

What is a MAC address lookup?

A MAC (Media Access Control) address lookup identifies the manufacturer of a network device from its hardware address. Every network interface (Wi-Fi adapter, Ethernet port, Bluetooth radio) has a unique 48-bit MAC address. The first 24 bits form the OUI (Organizationally Unique Identifier) assigned by the IEEE to the device manufacturer.

MAC address lookup is a fundamental network administration tool. It helps identify devices on your network, troubleshoot connectivity issues, detect unauthorized devices, and inventory network hardware. When your router shows a connected device with an unfamiliar MAC address, looking up the vendor instantly tells you what type of device it is.

How to use this tool

Enter a full MAC address (e.g., 00:1A:2B:3C:4D:5E) or just the first three octets (00:1A:2B). The tool searches the IEEE OUI database and returns the manufacturer name. It accepts various formats: colon-separated, dash-separated, or plain hexadecimal.

MAC address format

• 48 bits written as 6 hexadecimal pairs: XX:XX:XX:XX:XX:XX.
• First 3 bytes (OUI) = manufacturer. Last 3 bytes = device serial (assigned by manufacturer).
• Common notations: colon-separated (00:1A:2B), dash-separated (00-1A-2B), dot-separated (001A.2B3C), or plain (001A2B3C4D5E).
• The second-least-significant bit of the first byte indicates whether the address is universally administered (0) or locally administered (1).

How to find MAC addresses

On Windows: run 'ipconfig /all' in Command Prompt or 'Get-NetAdapter' in PowerShell. On macOS: System Preferences > Network > Advanced > Hardware, or 'ifconfig' in Terminal. On Linux: 'ip link show' or 'ifconfig'. On your router's admin page: look for the DHCP client list or connected devices table. Most network monitoring tools also display MAC addresses of all discovered devices.

Frequently asked questions

Can a MAC address be changed?

Yes. While the hardware-burned MAC address is permanent, most operating systems allow software-level MAC address spoofing. This is used legitimately for privacy (randomized MAC addresses on phones), network testing, and bypassing MAC-based access controls. iOS, Android, and modern Windows/Linux randomize MAC addresses by default when scanning for Wi-Fi networks to prevent tracking.

Is a MAC address the same as an IP address?

No. MAC addresses operate at Layer 2 (data link) and identify a physical device on a local network. IP addresses operate at Layer 3 (network) and identify a device's logical position in the network hierarchy. A device gets its MAC address from the hardware manufacturer (permanent) and its IP address from the network (usually via DHCP, temporary). Routers use ARP to map between the two.