diff --git a/frontend/src/test/pathUtils.test.ts b/frontend/src/test/pathUtils.test.ts
index 8ab0186..367fd27 100644
--- a/frontend/src/test/pathUtils.test.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/test/pathUtils.test.ts
@@ -69,6 +69,42 @@ describe('parsePathHops', () => {
   it('handles odd length by ignoring last character', () => {
     expect(parsePathHops('1A2B3')).toEqual(['1A', '2B']);
   });
+
+  it('parses 2-byte hops when hopCount is provided', () => {
+    // 8 hex chars / 2 hops = 4 chars per hop (2 bytes)
+    expect(parsePathHops('AABBCCDD', 2)).toEqual(['AABB', 'CCDD']);
+  });
+
+  it('parses 3-byte hops when hopCount is provided', () => {
+    // 12 hex chars / 2 hops = 6 chars per hop (3 bytes)
+    expect(parsePathHops('AABBCCDDEEFF', 2)).toEqual(['AABBCC', 'DDEEFF']);
+  });
+
+  it('parses single 2-byte hop', () => {
+    expect(parsePathHops('AABB', 1)).toEqual(['AABB']);
+  });
+
+  it('parses single 3-byte hop', () => {
+    expect(parsePathHops('AABBCC', 1)).toEqual(['AABBCC']);
+  });
+
+  it('falls back to 2-char chunks when hopCount does not divide evenly', () => {
+    // 6 hex chars / 2 hops = 3 chars per hop (odd, invalid)
+    expect(parsePathHops('1A2B3C', 2)).toEqual(['1A', '2B', '3C']);
+  });
+
+  it('falls back to 2-char chunks when hopCount is null', () => {
+    expect(parsePathHops('AABBCCDD', null)).toEqual(['AA', 'BB', 'CC', 'DD']);
+  });
+
+  it('falls back to 2-char chunks when hopCount is 0', () => {
+    expect(parsePathHops('AABB', 0)).toEqual(['AA', 'BB']);
+  });
+
+  it('handles 2-byte hops with many hops', () => {
+    // 3 hops × 4 chars = 12 hex chars
+    expect(parsePathHops('AABB11223344', 3)).toEqual(['AABB', '1122', '3344']);
+  });
 });
 
 describe('findContactsByPrefix', () => {
@@ -496,6 +532,47 @@ describe('resolvePath', () => {
 
     expect(result.receiver.publicKey).toBeNull();
   });
+
+  it('resolves 2-byte hop path using hopCount parameter', () => {
+    // Create repeaters whose public keys match 4-char prefixes
+    const repeater2byte1 = createContact({
+      public_key: '1A2B' + 'A'.repeat(60),
+      name: 'Repeater2B1',
+      type: CONTACT_TYPE_REPEATER,
+      lat: 40.75,
+      lon: -74.0,
+    });
+    const repeater2byte2 = createContact({
+      public_key: '3C4D' + 'B'.repeat(60),
+      name: 'Repeater2B2',
+      type: CONTACT_TYPE_REPEATER,
+      lat: 40.8,
+      lon: -73.95,
+    });
+    const contacts2byte = [repeater2byte1, repeater2byte2];
+
+    // Path "1A2B3C4D" with hopCount=2 → two 4-char hops: "1A2B", "3C4D"
+    const result = resolvePath('1A2B3C4D', sender, contacts2byte, config, 2);
+
+    expect(result.hops).toHaveLength(2);
+    expect(result.hops[0].prefix).toBe('1A2B');
+    expect(result.hops[0].matches).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(result.hops[0].matches[0].name).toBe('Repeater2B1');
+    expect(result.hops[1].prefix).toBe('3C4D');
+    expect(result.hops[1].matches).toHaveLength(1);
+    expect(result.hops[1].matches[0].name).toBe('Repeater2B2');
+  });
+
+  it('resolves same path differently without hopCount (legacy fallback)', () => {
+    // Without hopCount, "1A2B3C4D" → four 2-char hops: "1A", "2B", "3C", "4D"
+    const result = resolvePath('1A2B3C4D', sender, contacts, config);
+
+    expect(result.hops).toHaveLength(4);
+    expect(result.hops[0].prefix).toBe('1A');
+    expect(result.hops[1].prefix).toBe('2B');
+    expect(result.hops[2].prefix).toBe('3C');
+    expect(result.hops[3].prefix).toBe('4D');
+  });
 });
 
 describe('formatDistance', () => {
@@ -579,4 +656,36 @@ describe('formatHopCounts', () => {
     expect(result.allDirect).toBe(false);
     expect(result.hasMultiple).toBe(true);
   });
+
+  it('uses path_len metadata for 2-byte hops instead of hex length', () => {
+    // 8 hex chars with path_len=2 → 2 hops (not 4 as legacy would infer)
+    const result = formatHopCounts([{ path: 'AABBCCDD', path_len: 2, received_at: 1700000000 }]);
+    expect(result.display).toBe('2');
+    expect(result.allDirect).toBe(false);
+  });
+
+  it('uses path_len metadata for 3-byte hops', () => {
+    // 12 hex chars with path_len=2 → 2 hops (not 6 as legacy)
+    const result = formatHopCounts([
+      { path: 'AABBCCDDEEFF', path_len: 2, received_at: 1700000000 },
+    ]);
+    expect(result.display).toBe('2');
+  });
+
+  it('falls back to legacy count when path_len is null', () => {
+    // 8 hex chars, no path_len → legacy: 8/2 = 4 hops
+    const result = formatHopCounts([{ path: 'AABBCCDD', received_at: 1700000000 }]);
+    expect(result.display).toBe('4');
+  });
+
+  it('mixes paths with and without path_len metadata', () => {
+    const result = formatHopCounts([
+      { path: 'AABBCCDD', path_len: 2, received_at: 1700000000 }, // 2 hops (2-byte)
+      { path: '1A2B', received_at: 1700000001 }, // 2 hops (legacy)
+      { path: '', received_at: 1700000002 }, // direct
+    ]);
+    expect(result.display).toBe('d/2/2');
+    expect(result.allDirect).toBe(false);
+    expect(result.hasMultiple).toBe(true);
+  });
 });
diff --git a/tests/test_community_mqtt.py b/tests/test_community_mqtt.py
index fae00d0..b75dcdc 100644
--- a/tests/test_community_mqtt.py
+++ b/tests/test_community_mqtt.py
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@ from app.fanout.community_mqtt import (
     _build_radio_info,
     _build_status_topic,
     _calculate_packet_hash,
+    _decode_packet_fields,
     _ed25519_sign_expanded,
     _format_raw_packet,
     _generate_jwt_token,
@@ -376,6 +377,156 @@ class TestCalculatePacketHash:
         raw = bytes([0x10, 0x01, 0x02])
         assert _calculate_packet_hash(raw) == "0" * 16
 
+    def test_multibyte_2byte_hops_skips_correct_path_length(self):
+        """Mode 1 (2-byte hops), 2 hops → 4 bytes of path data to skip."""
+        import hashlib
+
+        # FLOOD route, payload_type=2 (TXT_MSG): (2<<2)|1 = 0x09
+        # path_byte = 0x42 → mode=1, hop_count=2 → path_wire_len = 2*2 = 4
+        path_data = b"\xaa\xbb\xcc\xdd"
+        payload = b"\x48\x65\x6c\x6c\x6f"  # "Hello"
+        raw = bytes([0x09, 0x42]) + path_data + payload
+        result = _calculate_packet_hash(raw)
+
+        expected = hashlib.sha256(bytes([2]) + payload).hexdigest()[:16].upper()
+        assert result == expected
+
+    def test_multibyte_3byte_hops_skips_correct_path_length(self):
+        """Mode 2 (3-byte hops), 1 hop → 3 bytes of path data to skip."""
+        import hashlib
+
+        # FLOOD route, payload_type=4 (ADVERT): (4<<2)|1 = 0x11
+        # path_byte = 0x81 → mode=2, hop_count=1 → path_wire_len = 1*3 = 3
+        path_data = b"\xaa\xbb\xcc"
+        payload = b"\xde\xad"
+        raw = bytes([0x11, 0x81]) + path_data + payload
+        result = _calculate_packet_hash(raw)
+
+        expected = hashlib.sha256(bytes([4]) + payload).hexdigest()[:16].upper()
+        assert result == expected
+
+    def test_trace_multibyte_uses_raw_wire_byte_in_hash(self):
+        """TRACE with multi-byte hops uses raw path_byte (not decoded hop count) in hash."""
+        import hashlib
+
+        # TRACE with FLOOD route: (9<<2)|1 = 0x25
+        # path_byte = 0x42 → mode=1, hop_count=2 → path_wire_len = 4
+        path_byte = 0x42
+        path_data = b"\xaa\xbb\xcc\xdd"
+        payload = b"\x01\x02"
+        raw = bytes([0x25, path_byte]) + path_data + payload
+        result = _calculate_packet_hash(raw)
+
+        # TRACE hash includes raw path_byte as uint16_t LE (0x42, 0x00)
+        expected = (
+            hashlib.sha256(bytes([9]) + path_byte.to_bytes(2, byteorder="little") + payload)
+            .hexdigest()[:16]
+            .upper()
+        )
+        assert result == expected
+
+    def test_multibyte_truncated_path_returns_zeroes(self):
+        """Packet claiming multi-byte path but truncated before path ends → zero hash."""
+        # FLOOD route, payload_type=2: (2<<2)|1 = 0x09
+        # path_byte = 0x42 → mode=1, hop_count=2 → needs 4 bytes of path, only 2 present
+        raw = bytes([0x09, 0x42, 0xAA, 0xBB])
+        assert _calculate_packet_hash(raw) == "0" * 16
+
+    def test_multibyte_transport_flood_with_2byte_hops(self):
+        """TRANSPORT_FLOOD with 2-byte hops correctly skips transport codes + path."""
+        import hashlib
+
+        # TRANSPORT_FLOOD (0x00), payload_type=4: (4<<2)|0 = 0x10
+        transport_codes = b"\x01\x02\x03\x04"
+        # path_byte = 0x41 → mode=1, hop_count=1 → path_wire_len = 2
+        path_data = b"\xaa\xbb"
+        payload = b"\xca\xfe"
+        raw = bytes([0x10]) + transport_codes + bytes([0x41]) + path_data + payload
+        result = _calculate_packet_hash(raw)
+
+        expected = hashlib.sha256(bytes([4]) + payload).hexdigest()[:16].upper()
+        assert result == expected
+
+
+class TestDecodePacketFieldsMultibyte:
+    """Test _decode_packet_fields with multi-byte hop paths."""
+
+    def test_1byte_hops_legacy(self):
+        """Legacy packet with mode=0, 3 hops → 3 path bytes."""
+        # FLOOD route, payload_type=2 (TXT_MSG): (2<<2)|1 = 0x09
+        path_data = b"\xaa\xbb\xcc"
+        payload = b"\x48\x65\x6c\x6c\x6f"
+        raw = bytes([0x09, 0x03]) + path_data + payload
+
+        route, ptype, plen, path_values, payload_type = _decode_packet_fields(raw)
+        assert route == "F"
+        assert ptype == "2"
+        assert path_values == ["aa", "bb", "cc"]
+        assert payload_type == 2
+
+    def test_2byte_hops(self):
+        """Mode 1, 2 hops → 4 path bytes split into 2 two-byte identifiers."""
+        # FLOOD route, payload_type=2: (2<<2)|1 = 0x09
+        # path_byte = 0x42 → mode=1, hop_count=2
+        path_data = b"\xaa\xbb\xcc\xdd"
+        payload = b"\x48\x65\x6c\x6c\x6f"
+        raw = bytes([0x09, 0x42]) + path_data + payload
+
+        route, ptype, plen, path_values, payload_type = _decode_packet_fields(raw)
+        assert route == "F"
+        assert ptype == "2"
+        assert path_values == ["aabb", "ccdd"]
+        assert payload_type == 2
+        assert plen == str(len(payload))
+
+    def test_3byte_hops(self):
+        """Mode 2, 1 hop → 3 path bytes as a single three-byte identifier."""
+        # FLOOD route, payload_type=4 (ADVERT): (4<<2)|1 = 0x11
+        # path_byte = 0x81 → mode=2, hop_count=1
+        path_data = b"\xaa\xbb\xcc"
+        payload = b"\xde\xad"
+        raw = bytes([0x11, 0x81]) + path_data + payload
+
+        route, ptype, plen, path_values, payload_type = _decode_packet_fields(raw)
+        assert route == "F"
+        assert ptype == "4"
+        assert path_values == ["aabbcc"]
+        assert payload_type == 4
+
+    def test_direct_packet_no_path(self):
+        """Direct packet (0 hops) → empty path list."""
+        # FLOOD route, payload_type=2: (2<<2)|1 = 0x09
+        # path_byte = 0x00 → mode=0, hop_count=0
+        payload = b"\x48\x65\x6c\x6c\x6f"
+        raw = bytes([0x09, 0x00]) + payload
+
+        route, ptype, plen, path_values, payload_type = _decode_packet_fields(raw)
+        assert path_values == []
+        assert plen == str(len(payload))
+
+    def test_transport_flood_2byte_hops(self):
+        """TRANSPORT_FLOOD with 2-byte hops: skip 4 transport bytes, then decode path."""
+        # TRANSPORT_FLOOD (0x00), payload_type=2: (2<<2)|0 = 0x08
+        transport_codes = b"\x01\x02\x03\x04"
+        # path_byte = 0x42 → mode=1, hop_count=2
+        path_data = b"\xaa\xbb\xcc\xdd"
+        payload = b"\xca\xfe"
+        raw = bytes([0x08]) + transport_codes + bytes([0x42]) + path_data + payload
+
+        route, ptype, plen, path_values, payload_type = _decode_packet_fields(raw)
+        assert route == "F"
+        assert path_values == ["aabb", "ccdd"]
+
+    def test_truncated_multibyte_path_returns_defaults(self):
+        """Packet claiming 2-byte hops but truncated → defaults."""
+        # FLOOD route, payload_type=2: (2<<2)|1 = 0x09
+        # path_byte = 0x42 → mode=1, hop_count=2 → needs 4 bytes, only 1
+        raw = bytes([0x09, 0x42, 0xAA])
+
+        route, ptype, plen, path_values, payload_type = _decode_packet_fields(raw)
+        assert path_values == []
+        assert plen == "0"
+
 
 class TestCommunityMqttPublisher:
     def test_initial_state(self):
diff --git a/tests/test_fanout.py b/tests/test_fanout.py
index 1d33cab..9f07ffe 100644
--- a/tests/test_fanout.py
+++ b/tests/test_fanout.py
@@ -661,6 +661,75 @@ class TestAppriseFormatBody:
         )
         assert "`direct`" in body
 
+    def test_dm_with_2byte_hop_path(self):
+        """Multi-byte (2-byte) hops are correctly split using path_len metadata."""
+        from app.fanout.apprise_mod import _format_body
+
+        body = _format_body(
+            {
+                "type": "PRIV",
+                "text": "hi",
+                "sender_name": "Alice",
+                "paths": [{"path": "aabbccdd", "path_len": 2}],
+            },
+            include_path=True,
+        )
+        assert "**via:**" in body
+        assert "`aabb`" in body
+        assert "`ccdd`" in body
+
+    def test_dm_with_3byte_hop_path(self):
+        """Multi-byte (3-byte) hops are correctly split using path_len metadata."""
+        from app.fanout.apprise_mod import _format_body
+
+        body = _format_body(
+            {
+                "type": "PRIV",
+                "text": "hi",
+                "sender_name": "Alice",
+                "paths": [{"path": "aabbccddeeff", "path_len": 2}],
+            },
+            include_path=True,
+        )
+        assert "**via:**" in body
+        assert "`aabbcc`" in body
+        assert "`ddeeff`" in body
+
+    def test_channel_with_multibyte_path(self):
+        """Channel message with 2-byte hop path_len metadata."""
+        from app.fanout.apprise_mod import _format_body
+
+        body = _format_body(
+            {
+                "type": "CHAN",
+                "text": "hi",
+                "sender_name": "Bob",
+                "channel_name": "#general",
+                "paths": [{"path": "aabbccdd", "path_len": 2}],
+            },
+            include_path=True,
+        )
+        assert "**#general:**" in body
+        assert "`aabb`" in body
+        assert "`ccdd`" in body
+
+    def test_legacy_path_without_path_len(self):
+        """Legacy path (no path_len) falls back to 2-char chunks."""
+        from app.fanout.apprise_mod import _format_body
+
+        body = _format_body(
+            {
+                "type": "PRIV",
+                "text": "hi",
+                "sender_name": "Alice",
+                "paths": [{"path": "aabb"}],
+            },
+            include_path=True,
+        )
+        assert "**via:**" in body
+        assert "`aa`" in body
+        assert "`bb`" in body
+
 
 class TestAppriseNormalizeDiscordUrl:
     def test_discord_scheme(self):
diff --git a/tests/test_path_utils.py b/tests/test_path_utils.py
index 93a0e68..7c8f755 100644
--- a/tests/test_path_utils.py
+++ b/tests/test_path_utils.py
@@ -143,3 +143,42 @@ class TestInferHashSize:
 
     def test_zero_hop_count_defaults_to_1(self):
         assert infer_hash_size("1a2b", 0) == 1
+
+
+class TestContactToRadioDictHashMode:
+    """Test that Contact.to_radio_dict() correctly derives out_path_hash_mode."""
+
+    def test_1byte_hops(self):
+        from app.models import Contact
+
+        c = Contact(public_key="aa" * 32, last_path="1a2b3c", last_path_len=3)
+        d = c.to_radio_dict()
+        assert d["out_path_hash_mode"] == 0  # infer_hash_size=1, mode=0
+
+    def test_2byte_hops(self):
+        from app.models import Contact
+
+        c = Contact(public_key="bb" * 32, last_path="1a2b3c4d", last_path_len=2)
+        d = c.to_radio_dict()
+        assert d["out_path_hash_mode"] == 1  # infer_hash_size=2, mode=1
+
+    def test_3byte_hops(self):
+        from app.models import Contact
+
+        c = Contact(public_key="cc" * 32, last_path="1a2b3c4d5e6f", last_path_len=2)
+        d = c.to_radio_dict()
+        assert d["out_path_hash_mode"] == 2  # infer_hash_size=3, mode=2
+
+    def test_no_path_defaults_to_mode0(self):
+        from app.models import Contact
+
+        c = Contact(public_key="dd" * 32, last_path=None, last_path_len=-1)
+        d = c.to_radio_dict()
+        assert d["out_path_hash_mode"] == 0
+
+    def test_empty_path_defaults_to_mode0(self):
+        from app.models import Contact
+
+        c = Contact(public_key="ee" * 32, last_path="", last_path_len=0)
+        d = c.to_radio_dict()
+        assert d["out_path_hash_mode"] == 0