How to get the server IP with Laravel?

In Laravel, you can get the server IP address using the global $_SERVER['SERVER_ADDR'] variable or Laravel's builtin request methods. The server IP represents the IP address of the server hosting your application.

The $_SERVER superglobal variable contains information about headers, paths, and script locations, including server details.

Using $_SERVER['SERVER_ADDR']

The simplest method is to access the server IP directly from the $_SERVER superglobal ?

<?php
namespace App\Http\Controllers;
use Illuminate\Http\Request;

class ServerController extends Controller {
   public function getServerIP() {
      echo $_SERVER['SERVER_ADDR'];
   }
}
?>

127.0.0.1

Using Laravel's Request Object

Laravel provides the request() helper function with a server() method to access server variables ?

<?php
namespace App\Http\Controllers;
use Illuminate\Http\Request;

class ServerController extends Controller {
   public function getServerIP() {
      echo request()->server('SERVER_ADDR');
   }
}
?>

127.0.0.1

Client IP vs Server IP

Note that request()->ip() returns the client's IP address, not the server IP ?

<?php
namespace App\Http\Controllers;
use Illuminate\Http\Request;

class ServerController extends Controller {
   public function compareIPs() {
      echo "Server IP: " . $_SERVER['SERVER_ADDR'] . "<br>";
      echo "Client IP: " . request()->ip();
   }
}
?>

Server IP: 127.0.0.1
Client IP: 127.0.0.1

Conclusion

Use $_SERVER['SERVER_ADDR'] or request()->server('SERVER_ADDR') to get the server IP in Laravel. Remember that request()->ip() returns the client IP, not the server IP.