  The rank of an $A$-hypergeometric $D$-module $M_A(\beta)$, associated with a
full rank $(d\times n)$-matrix $A$ and a vector of parameters $\beta\in
\mathbb{C}^d$, is known to be the normalized volume of $A$, denoted
$\mathrm{vol}(A)$, when $\beta$ lies outside the exceptional arrangement
$\mathcal{E}(A)$, an affine subspace arrangement of codimension at least two.
If $\beta\in \mathcal{E}(A)$ is simple, we prove that $d-1$ is a tight upper
bound for the ratio $\mathrm{rank}(M_A(\beta))/\mathrm{vol}(A)$ for any $d\geq
3$. We also prove that the set of parameters $\beta$ such that this ratio is at
least $2$ is an affine subspace arrangement of codimension at least $3$.
