How to List Network Interfaces on Ubuntu Linux
Network interfaces are the physical or virtual connections, such as Wi-Fi cards and Ethernet ports, that link your computer to a network. Ubuntu Linux lets you view them with built-in terminal commands, so you don’t need to install anything extra for most methods. Running the standard ip link show command lists all available network adapters on Ubuntu 22.04 and later releases.
You can also type nmcli device status into the Terminal to see a quick status list of all active network devices. If you need the IP address for a specific connection, the ip addr show command shows it immediately. Each method below shows a different amount of detail, so pick the one that fits the question you’re trying to answer.
To list network interfaces on Ubuntu, open a Terminal with Ctrl+Alt+T and run ip addr show. Each adapter appears as a numbered block with its name, such as enp0s3 or wlp2s0, its state (UP or DOWN), and its IP address. For a shorter list of names and connection status, run nmcli device status instead.
Show network interfaces using the IP command
You can list the network interfaces Ubuntu recognizes by running the ip addr show command in your terminal. This built-in tool displays every network adapter, its IP address, and its current connection status. You don’t have to install any extra software.
- Press Ctrl+Alt+T to open a Terminal window. You should see a command prompt waiting for input.
- Type the ip addr show command exactly as shown in the block below and press Enter.
- Read the output. Each interface gets its own numbered block. You will normally see lo, the loopback interface your machine uses to talk to itself. You will also see your Ethernet or Wi-Fi adapter, which usually has a name like enp0s3 or wlp2s0 on current Ubuntu releases.
- Check the state in each block. UP means the interface is active, and DOWN means it is not. Lines starting with inet hold the IPv4 address, and lines starting with inet6 hold the IPv6 address.
To look at one adapter only, add its name to the end, for example ip addr show followed by the interface name.
If you only want to know which adapters are present and whether they are active, run the commands below. They give a much shorter result than ip addr show. The ip link show command lists each interface with its state and hardware (MAC) address. The nmcli device status command prints a compact table with the device name, its type, and whether it is connected or disconnected.
Run them one at a time, and open a Terminal first if you don’t have one open (Ctrl+Alt+T).
NetworkManager is the service that manages connections on Ubuntu Desktop. It lets you see your network interfaces in a visual form, and you can get the same result through the desktop network settings.
- Open the system menu in the top-right corner of the screen and click the Settings icon, or search for Settings in the Activities overview.
- In the left sidebar, click Network to see wired connections, or Wi-Fi to see wireless ones. The adapters on your machine appear in the main pane.
- Click the gear icon next to a connection to open its details. You should see the IP address, MAC address, and link speed.
On Ubuntu Server there is no desktop, so use the terminal commands instead.
They talk to NetworkManager, so they work on a desktop install and on any server that uses it. If a command reports that NetworkManager isn't running, the system is probably using a different network service, and the ip commands above will still work.
nmcli device status
Show network interfaces using netstat
You can list the network interfaces Ubuntu detects with the netstat -i command. It prints a simple table of adapters, with counts of packets sent and received and any errors. That makes it useful for a quick health check as well as a list of names.
Ubuntu no longer installs that package by default, so if the command isn't found, install net-tools first.
Run netstat -i in the Terminal as an alternative method. It displays a tabular summary of the interfaces.
- The first column shows the interface name.
- The columns that start with RX count received packets, and the ones that start with TX count transmitted packets.
- Non-zero values in the error or drop columns can point to a bad cable, a faulty driver, or a congested link.
The ifconfig command also lists network interfaces on Ubuntu Linux and shows the active connections on your computer. It was installed by default in older releases, but it now comes from the net-tools package. If your system says the command is missing, install net-tools with apt and run it again. No restart is needed.
The ip commands shown earlier are the modern replacement, so use ifconfig mainly when you're following older documentation or scripts.
To inspect one specific network adapter, run “ifconfig <interface name>” or “ip addr show <interface name>.” Replace the interface name with a real name from your own list, such as the Ethernet or Wi-Fi adapter you saw in the earlier output. If you get an error saying the device doesn't exist, check the spelling, since interface names are case-sensitive.
ip link show
List network interfaces
You can list the network interfaces Ubuntu has registered by looking in the system directory with the ls /sys/class/net/ command. This prints the plain names of the wired and wireless adapters on your computer. It gives you names only, with no addresses or status.
Expect to see lo in the list, and possibly virtual interfaces if you run containers or virtual machines. The name list is handy in scripts, or when you need an exact name to use with the other commands in this guide.
Ubuntu Linux lists network interfaces with commands like ip addr show and ifconfig. These commands give detailed information about each network connection, and running them is the quickest way to understand how your system's network is set up.
Several commands list network interfaces on Ubuntu, and each one gives a different level of detail. Use the short ones for a quick check and the detailed ones when you are troubleshooting.
- Multiple commands can be used to list network interfaces on Ubuntu Linux, providing varying levels of detail
- Popular commands include "ip link show", "nmcli device status", "ip addr show", and "netstat -i"
- The "ifconfig" command, previously installed by default, now requires the "net-tools" package
- Detailed information about specific network interfaces can be obtained using specific commands such as "ifconfig <interface name>" or "ip addr show <interface name>"
- Another method is to list the content of the network interfaces folder using "ls /sys/class/net/"
- These commands and methods serve as a starting point to display and list network interfaces on Ubuntu Linux
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Richard
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Richard is a writer at Geek Rewind who turns complex IT tasks into clear, step-by-step guides. He draws on years of hands-on experience in system administration and enterprise IT operations, focusing on Windows, Linux and WordPress: the problems people actually run into, and the fixes that work. His server and WordPress guides come from systems he runs himself. Richard builds and maintains the platform behind Geek Rewind, from its Ubuntu servers and Nginx configuration to its custom WordPress plugins. Many new tutorials start with readers' questions, and he's always glad to answer them in the comments.
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