Free tool · Reference
Administrative Distance
The default administrative distance for every routing source.
| Route source | AD | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Connected interface | 0 | Directly attached network |
| Static route | 1 | Manually configured (next-hop or exit interface) |
| EIGRP summary route | 5 | Auto or manual summary |
| External BGP (eBGP) | 20 | Prefix learned from another AS |
| Internal EIGRP | 90 | EIGRP inside the same AS |
| IGRP | 100 | Legacy Cisco IGP |
| OSPF | 110 | All OSPF route types |
| IS-IS | 115 | Link-state IGP |
| RIP | 120 | RIP v1 / v2 |
| EGP | 140 | Exterior Gateway Protocol (legacy) |
| ODR | 160 | On-Demand Routing (hub-and-spoke) |
| External EIGRP | 170 | Redistributed into EIGRP |
| Internal BGP (iBGP) | 200 | Prefix learned from inside the same AS |
| Unknown / unusable | 255 | Never installed in the routing table |
Lower administrative distance wins when the same prefix is learned from two sources. Metric only breaks ties within one source. Values shown are Cisco IOS defaults and can be changed per-route or per-protocol.
About this tool
Free Cisco administrative distance reference. A searchable table of the default administrative distance for every route source — connected, static, eBGP, EIGRP, OSPF, IS-IS, RIP, iBGP and more — so you can tell instantly which route a router will prefer when the same prefix is learned two ways. Everything runs entirely in your browser — nothing you type is sent to a server.
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