How important is it to have a different IP address for every site?
 

How important is it to have every site on a different IP? I have quite a few blogs and other sites and I've been thinking about this. I've searched google and can't really come up with a solid answer.

Maybe I should ask these questions. When is it okay to put several sites on one IP? When is it best to use one IP per site?

Are they interlinked?

It is important, but not super important. I've had 30 sites on the same shared hosting account(so same IP) and still ranked very well on Google.

I've had 15 IP's and 15 sites on a dedicated box and still ranked very well on Google for all of them.

In a nutshell, it is a factor, but not a huge factor. Google knows that not everyone is baller rich, but they still may have "great" sites.

If you want to be super "perfect", then get different IP's. It won't make a significant difference unless you're going for huge keywords, though.

It's not just different IP's.

You also need different name servers, if possible different GEO, and also make sure you are not using Google tools and the same account for things like Analytics. Few seem to follow ALL of the rules for this stuff.

They'll do ONLY IP, or ONLY something else. Then have all sites in the same Google Analtyics or Webmaster Tools account. Killing the advantage.
:2 cents:

^ This. :2 cents:

That's true.

I wouldn't put all sites on the same IP if I wanted to interlink them for SEO reasons. Otherwise I dont think it really matters....

This is needed for black hat or heavy interlinking between sites also if you are using duplicate content with interlinking. If you do regular blogs with original content and don't interlink them you can have them all on the same IP even.

Don't link anything on the same box, or with the same registrar, nothing on the same DNS or written with the same software, or ANYTHING the same.

Nicky are you a man or a woman? I like you whoever you may be :)

Just route the bot to a fake dns :thumbsup

Exactamundo.
:thumbsup

There are SEO companies I have spoken to that have told me that they will not accept you as a client if you do not have your domain on a dedicated IP.