How Many IPv4 Addresses Are Available?
AFRINIC has just over 1 million IPv4 addresses left to allocate and new members can get 1,024 addresses. APNIC has almost 2.5 million IPv4 addresses left and new members can get 512.
APNIC’s pool was replenished when it required holders of legacy IPv4 addresses to become members. Some legacy addresses were registered to organizations that no longer existed. Those addresses were reclaimed and became available for reallocation.
Statistics published the by NRO, May 2024
The other RIRs have allocated all their IPv4 addresses. They can still make occasional allocations because they reclaim addresses when a member goes out of business. This path is slow, with waits of well over a year.
Addresses are also available for lease or to buy. Some organizations have changed their needs since receiving large allocations in the internet’s early years. These organizations can either lease out their addresses or transfer them to another organization.
All the RIRs have policies enabling a transfer market. RIPE policy explicitly allows ‘temporary transfers’ – another term for leases. ARIN and LACNIC don’t have explicit policies enabling leases but don’t have policies against leases. The policies in the AFRINIC and APNIC regions do not support leasing.
Explore More Related to RIRs:
- Who Owns IPv4 Addresses?
- IPv4 Address Prices
- What is an IPv4 Address?
- How Many IPv4 Addresses Are There?