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350-401 The maximum hop count for EIGRP? Practice Question
What is the maximum hop count for EIGRP?
⚠ Common exam trap
Cisco often tests the distinction between EIGRP's hop count limit of 255 and RIP's hop count limit of 15, tempting candidates who confuse these two distance-vector protocols.
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
✓
255
EIGRP uses a maximum hop count of 255, which is the default and hard limit built into the protocol. This value is stored in the TTL field of the EIGRP packet header, and once a route exceeds 255 hops, it is considered unreachable. This high limit allows EIGRP to scale in large enterprise networks without the restrictive hop count constraints of distance-vector protocols like RIP.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
255
Why this is correct
Correct. EIGRP has a maximum hop count of 255.
- ✗
100
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. 100 is the default hop count limit for RIP, not EIGRP.
- ✗
15
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. 15 is the maximum hop count for RIP.
- ✗
224
Why it's wrong here
Incorrect. 224 is not a standard hop count limit for EIGRP.
Visual reference
Quick reference
Routing Protocol Comparison
| Protocol | Metric | Max Hops | Algorithm | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RIP v2 | Hop count | 15 | Bellman-Ford | Distance vector |
| OSPF | Cost (bandwidth) | Unlimited | Dijkstra (SPF) | Link state |
| EIGRP | Composite metric | Unlimited | DUAL | Hybrid |
| IS-IS | Cost | Unlimited | Dijkstra | Link state |
| BGP | Policy / attributes | Unlimited | Path vector | Path vector |
RIP's 15-hop limit makes it unsuitable for large networks. OSPF and EIGRP dominate modern enterprise deployments.
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Last reviewed: Jul 4, 2026
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