Hop

In computer networking, a hop is one portion of the path between source and destination.

On the Internet, for example, most data packets need to go through several routers before they reach their final destination. Each time the packet is forwarded to the next router, a hop occurs. The more hops, the longer it takes for data to go from source to destination. Theoretically, the fewer hops it takes to get your data onto the backbone, the faster your access will be.