What Is an APN?

An Access Point Name (APN) is the gateway an IoT device’s cellular network uses to connect to the internet. Any IoT or mobile device that generates data must be configured with a valid APN.

In general, an APN should contain two parts (though they’re not a must):

• The network identifier, which names the network
• The operator identifier, which designates the mobile network operator (MNO)

When connecting to the internet, the carrier will determine the IP address to assign to the IoT device, including security parameters.