The internet’s growth has outpaced the address space that powers it, leaving network operators dependent on a finite resource that ran out more than a decade ago.
Organizations expanding their cloud footprint, ISP territory, or AI infrastructure must now navigate a specialized secondary market to acquire IPv4 blocks.
This guide explains how that market works, what registry rules apply, and how to move from initial planning to a completed acquisition without missteps.
The information here is drawn from policies published by the Regional Internet Registries, alongside current market data from leading IPv4 brokers and industry analysts.
The State of the IPv4 Address Market
The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority allocated its last five /8 blocks to the Regional Internet Registries on 3 February 2011, depleting the global free pool.
ARIN exhausted its own free pool on 24 September 2015, leaving transfers and the waiting list as the only paths to new IPv4 space in North America.
RIPE NCC reached its last /8 block on 14 September 2012, while LACNIC’s pool was officially considered exhausted in June 2014.
These dates collectively mark the point at which buying IPv4 addresses became a structured commercial activity rather than a routine registry allocation.
Demand Drivers in 2026
Demand continues to outpace any meaningful shift away from IPv4, with cloud providers, AI training clusters, and regional ISPs expanding their addressable footprints.
Even enterprises with IPv6 deployments still require IPv4 for legacy systems, dual-stack environments, and customer-facing services that the wider internet expects to reach over IPv4.
Google’s public IPv6 statistics show global adoption hovering near 47 percent in early 2026, with the United States only recently crossing the 50 percent line in IPv6 traffic.
That leaves a majority of internet traffic still riding on IPv4, sustaining demand for routable address blocks across every region.
Understanding Regional Internet Registries
Every IPv4 block in circulation is registered to an organization through one of five Regional Internet Registries, namely ARIN, RIPE NCC, APNIC, LACNIC, and AFRINIC.
Each registry maintains its own Number Resource Policy Manual and transfer rules, which buyers and sellers must follow before any allocation can change hands.
The registry covering the recipient organization determines the documentation, justification, and contractual requirements for an incoming transfer.
Buyers, therefore, need to identify the correct RIR for their operating region before opening any commercial conversation about price or inventory.
Inter-RIR Compatibility
Cross-region transactions are handled through inter-RIR transfers, which require that both registries operate compatible, reciprocal, needs-based policies.
ARIN currently maintains such compatibility with APNIC, RIPE NCC, and LACNIC, allowing addresses to flow between those four registries under standardized procedures.
This compatibility framework means a buyer in the ARIN region can acquire blocks registered in Europe or Asia, provided each side follows its registry’s paperwork.
The flexibility also helps market pricing converge across compatible regions, with regional differences narrowing as inventory moves toward demand.
Where Businesses Buy IP Addresses Today
The secondary market operates through three main venues, namely registry-listed facilitators, dedicated IPv4 marketplaces, and direct private transactions between organizations.
Each channel ultimately routes through the same registry transfer processes, but the level of guidance, due diligence, and pricing transparency varies significantly between them.
Most enterprises buy IP addresses through registry-aware brokers such as Brander Group, which has operated as an IT and connectivity advisory since 2007 and completes roughly 50 to 70 transfers monthly across ARIN, RIPE, and APNIC.
This kind of facilitator removes the burden of identifying counterparties, qualifying inventory, and navigating cross-border paperwork.
Transfer Policies You Must Follow
The most relevant ARIN policies for buyers are codified in sections 8.3 and 8.4 of the Number Resource Policy Manual.
These sections set out the formal mechanisms by which IPv4 space changes hands between specified parties in the ARIN region and beyond.
8.3 Specified Recipient Transfers
Section 8.3 governs transfers between specified parties within the same ARIN region. Both source and recipient organizations submit separate transfer requests through ARIN Online, and the recipient must demonstrate need under section 8.5 by showing how the addresses will be used within 24 months.
ARIN collects a non-refundable processing fee of 500 USD per transfer request, invoiced to the source organization’s billing contact.
Payment is required before the request is evaluated, and approval is never guaranteed by submission of the fee alone.
8.4 Inter-RIR Transfers
Section 8.4 governs inter-regional transfers and applies whenever the source and recipient sit in different RIRs.
Source entities outside ARIN must meet their home registry’s requirements, while recipients inside the ARIN region remain subject to ARIN’s needs-based policies and 24-month projection.
Source organizations are restricted from applying to the ARIN Waitlist for 36 months after transferring IPv4 resources, a rule designed to prevent arbitrage between transfer and waiting list mechanisms.
Reserved pool addresses under sections 4.4 and 4.10 are not eligible for transfer at all.
Practical Steps Before You Transact
The procurement workflow begins long before any block is identified or any payment is discussed.
Buyers should first quantify their 24-month address requirement, prepare technical justification documents, and confirm their organization is in good standing with the relevant registry.
Pre-Approval
ARIN offers transfer pre-approval for organizations seeking IPv4 space under either 8.3 or 8.4, valid for 24 months once granted.
Pre-approval lets buyers enter the market with a known cap on what registry policy will allow them to acquire, which removes a significant source of execution risk from later negotiations.
Due Diligence and Routing Hygiene
Reputation testing should happen before any commitment, because much of the available IPv4 space carries historical damage from previous use.
A serious broker runs every candidate subnet against major blacklists and provides the report to the buyer before payment.
Source organizations should review Route Origin Authorizations, Internet Routing Registry objects, and reverse DNS records before the transfer, and recipients should re-create these records once the block sits in their account.
ARIN’s own transfer best-practice guidance specifically flags routing security and registry record updates as essential to a clean handover.
Pricing in Today’s Market
Per-IP pricing in 2025 ranged from 20 to 35 USD per address for larger /16 to /20 blocks, and from 30 to 50 USD for smaller /22 to /24 blocks. IPv4.
Global reports documented /16 prices dropping below 20 USD per IP in mid-2025, reflecting a wave of large-block supply entering the market.
Region, reputation, and block size all materially affect the final price, with cleaner inventory and smaller blocks generally commanding a premium.
Leasing remains an alternative at around 0.40 USD per IP per month, useful for short-term projects or for buyers waiting on better purchase pricing.
Common Pitfalls to Avoid
Skipping due diligence is the single most expensive mistake, because acquiring a block on widely used blacklists can damage email deliverability and customer-facing services from day one.
The cost of remediation or replacement almost always exceeds what proper screening would have cost upfront.
Bypassing escrow or paying sellers before registry confirmation creates equally serious counterparty risk.
Reputable marketplaces hold funds neutrally until the registry confirms that the resource has been re-registered under the recipient’s account.
Conclusion
Buying IPv4 addresses in 2026 is a regulated process governed by registry policies from the depletion years between 2011 and 2015.
The market has matured into a stable secondary economy, but it still rewards buyers who plan, follow registry procedures, and engage experienced facilitators.
A buyer who maps internal need, secures pre-approval, runs due diligence, and uses escrow turns a complex transaction into a routine procurement exercise.
Those four steps, more than pricing arbitrage, determine whether an IPv4 acquisition delivers lasting value to the network it supports.
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