MAC Address Lookup

Identify network hardware manufacturers instantly. Enter any MAC address (e.g., 28:CF:E9:AA:BB:CC or 3C-52-82-12-34-56) to find the assigned vendor, OUI, address type, and registration details.

Supports colon, hyphen, or no separators (6 or 12 hex digits). Case insensitive.
Apple Inc. Intel Corporate Dell Inc. Cisco Systems Microsoft Corp. Oracle (VirtualBox) Samsung Electronics
Privacy & data source: Your MAC address prefix is sent to our secure api. No full MAC or personal data is logged or shared. All API responses are anonymized.

Understanding MAC Address & OUI Allocation

A Media Access Control (MAC) address is a unique identifier assigned to network interfaces (Ethernet, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth). The first 24 bits (3 bytes) form the Organizationally Unique Identifier (OUI) — which identifies the manufacturer or vendor. The remaining 24 bits are assigned by the vendor to ensure uniqueness. Our lookup tool uses a reliable third‑party API (maclookup.app) that maintains a complete, frequently updated IEEE OUI database, ensuring >99% accuracy.

MAC address anatomy: 00:1A:2B : 3C:4D:5E → OUI (vendor) + NIC specific

Total 48 bits (6 bytes), usually represented in hexadecimal notation.

Why Use This MAC Vendor Database Tool?

  • Network inventory & asset management – Quickly identify device manufacturers from MAC addresses (switches, routers, IoT).
  • Cybersecurity & incident response – Investigate unknown devices on your network, detect rogue hardware.
  • Educational reference – Learn about IEEE 802, OUI assignment, and how MAC address structure works.
  • Troubleshooting Wi-Fi/Ethernet – Match MAC address prefixes with vendors in ARP tables or DHCP logs.

How MAC Lookup Works (Technical Insight)

The IEEE Registration Authority assigns OUIs to hardware manufacturers, each block containing 16.7 million unique addresses. Our tool sends the first 6 hexadecimal digits (3 bytes) from any valid MAC address to a server‑side PHP endpoint. The endpoint calls the public maclookup.app API, which returns vendor name, company details, and OUI registration information. Results are cached to reduce API calls and improve speed. The front‑end also performs local analysis of the second‑least‑significant bit to determine unicast/multicast and universal/local address types. This hybrid approach ensures both reliability and rich data presentation.

Bit-Level Interpretation

MAC Address Bits (first octet LSB) Meaning Example
Bit 1 (multicast bit) 0 = Unicast, 1 = Multicast 01:00:5E:xx:xx:xx → IPv4 multicast
Bit 2 (local/global) 0 = globally unique (OUI assigned), 1 = locally administered 02:00:00:00:00:01 → locally assigned

IEEE OUI Reference Table (Popular Vendors)

OUI (hex prefix) Vendor / Manufacturer Typical product segment
28:CF:E9 Apple Inc. iPhone, Mac, iPad, Apple TV
3C:52:82 Intel Corporate Ethernet controllers, wireless NICs
00:14:22 Dell Inc. Laptops, servers, networking
BC:AE:C5 Cisco Systems Routers, switches, IoT gateways
00:15:5D Microsoft Corp. Hyper-V virtual adapters
08:00:27 Oracle Corp. (VirtualBox) Virtual machine NICs
E0:D5:5E Samsung Electronics Smartphones, smart TVs, IoT
00:1A:2B Hewlett Packard Enterprise Printers, servers, switches
00:50:56 VMware, Inc. Virtual machine ethernet
B8:27:EB Raspberry Pi Foundation Raspberry Pi boards
Case Study: Enterprise Rogue Device Detection

A large enterprise noticed unknown devices on their internal Wi‑Fi. Using MAC vendor lookup, they traced the OUI 00:0A:F5 to a consumer smart plug not authorized in the corporate network. By cross-referencing OUI allocation, the security team implemented MAC filtering policies and improved network access control, reducing attack surface. This highlights the practical value of instant OUI identification in IT security workflows.

Frequently Asked Questions about MAC Address Lookup

No. A MAC address only identifies the hardware manufacturer, not the user location or identity. However, combined with other data, MAC addresses are considered semi-identifiers. Our tool only sends the OUI prefix (first 3 bytes) to the API, and we never log anything.

A locally administered address is manually assigned by a network administrator and overrides the burned-in address (BIA). The second bit of the first octet is set to 1. Such addresses are often used for virtual machines, privacy protection (MAC randomization), or failover clustering.

We use the maclookup.app API, which updates daily from the IEEE registry. This guarantees the most current vendor assignments available.

OUI (24-bit block) is the classic 3-byte identifier. IAB (Individual Address Block) provides 1.5 million addresses for smaller organizations. CID (Company ID) is another 24-bit block. Our API resolves all types.

Modern devices (iOS, Android, Windows) randomize MAC addresses for privacy when scanning networks. The randomized address typically has the locally administered bit set and the OUI may be a generic placeholder. Our tool will still attempt to interpret the OUI; however, it may return "vendor not found" for random entries. For accurate identification, look for the burned-in address.

Trusted network engineering resource – Developed in collaboration with network engineers and using the authoritative IEEE OUI public registry via the maclookup.app API. Updated in real‑time. For official allocations, visit IEEE Registration Authority.

Additional Resources & Standards

Data integrity: Real‑time updates via maclookup.app. Caching layer reduces API calls.