An IP address (short for Internet Protocol address) is a numerical label assigned to each device connected to a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol for communication. An IP address serves two main purposes: host or network interface identification and location addressing. In essence, it’s the equivalent of a street address for your computer.
A MAC address (short for Media Access Control address) is a unique identifier assigned to network interfaces for communications at the data link layer of a network segment. MAC addresses are used by network hardware such as Ethernet cards and Wi-Fi network adapters to identify themselves on a network.