Question 1,320 of 724
DVA-C02 Development with AWS Services Practice Question
A developer is using Amazon SQS to decouple microservices. The consumer service processes messages from the queue. To reduce processing time, the developer wants to receive multiple messages in a single API call. What is the maximum number of messages that can be received at once?
⚠ Common exam trap
Many exam-takers confuse the SQS ReceiveMessage batch limit (10) with the SQS SendMessageBatch limit (10) or the Lambda event source mapping batch size (up to 10,000), leading candidates to pick 5, 20, or 100.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
10
Amazon SQS allows a consumer to retrieve up to 10 messages in a single ReceiveMessage API call. This is the hard limit enforced by the SQS service, regardless of the queue type (standard or FIFO). Using this maximum batch size can reduce the number of API calls and improve throughput, but each message must still be processed individually and deleted after processing.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
5
Why it's wrong here
While 5 is indeed the default value for the `MaxNumberOfMessages` parameter in an SQS `ReceiveMessage` API call, it is not the maximum possible number of messages that can be retrieved. Developers can explicitly configure this parameter to request more messages per call, up to the service's defined hard limit. Therefore, selecting 5 as the maximum is incorrect, as a higher number is permissible and often more efficient for message processing.
- ✗
100
Why it's wrong here
This value significantly exceeds the strict upper limit enforced by Amazon SQS for the `MaxNumberOfMessages` parameter in a single API request. The SQS `ReceiveMessage` API is designed to return a maximum of 10 messages in one call, regardless of how many messages are available in the queue. Attempting to set this parameter to 100 would result in an API validation error, making it an invalid choice.
- ✗
20
Why it's wrong here
Setting the `MaxNumberOfMessages` parameter to 20 is not permissible because it surpasses the maximum allowed number of messages that can be retrieved in a single SQS `ReceiveMessage` API call. Although it's a round number, the service imposes a hard cap of 10 messages per request to ensure efficient resource utilization and predictable performance. Therefore, any value greater than 10, including 20, will be rejected by the SQS API.
- ✓
10
Why this is correct
This is the correct maximum value for the `MaxNumberOfMessages` parameter when calling the SQS `ReceiveMessage` API. Amazon SQS allows consumers to retrieve up to 10 messages in a single batch, which helps reduce the number of API calls, minimize network overhead, and improve overall processing efficiency for microservices. Requesting 10 messages optimizes throughput while adhering to the service's defined limits.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
This DVA-C02 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Amazon Web Services certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the DVA-C02 exam.
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