Bitcoin-qt getnewaddress returns address starting with 2 I am expecting it starts with '3' the the results below:
getnewaddress &quot;&quot; &quot;p2sh-segwit&quot;
2NFcKJTPZs1syYhwaBkXty6Vt6FEKxD3HTC

Is this because I am running on a private block chain?
You are using testnet. Addresses starting with &quot;M&quot;, &quot;N&quot;, &quot;2&quot; and &quot;tb1&quot; are testnet addresses.