diff --git a/llmeter/plotting.py b/llmeter/plotting.py
index 7633513..9d52dfe 100644
--- a/llmeter/plotting.py
+++ b/llmeter/plotting.py
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@
 import os
 import warnings
 from functools import partial
+from numbers import Real
 from statistics import StatisticsError, quantiles
 from typing import Sequence
 
@@ -26,12 +27,24 @@
     matplotlib = DeferredError("Please install matplotlib to use plotting functions")
 
 
-def binning(vector, bins: int | None = None) -> list[str]:
+def binning(vector, bins: int | None = None) -> tuple[list[Real], bool]:
+    """Map the elements of `vector` to a discrete set of `bins` representative values for plotting
+
+    If the cardinality of `vector` already exactly matches the number of `bins`, the same values
+    will be returned. If the number of `bins` is not specified, a heuristic is used to select one.
+
+    Returns:
+        result: Elements of `vector` mapped to the mid-points of the calculated bins
+        binned: Truthy if the data was binned, falsy if it was left as-is
+
+    TODO: Possibly extend `binned` to return the actual bin intervals instead of just True?
+    """
     if len(vector) == 0:
-        return []
-    # https://stats.stackexchange.com/a/114497
+        return [], False
+    cardinality = len(set(vector))
+
     if bins is None:
-        cardinality = len(set(vector))
+        # https://stats.stackexchange.com/a/114497
         if cardinality < len(vector) / 20:
             m = cardinality
         else:
@@ -42,9 +55,12 @@ def binning(vector, bins: int | None = None) -> list[str]:
                 m = int((max(vector) - min(vector)) // h) + 1
             except StatisticsError:
                 m = cardinality // 4 + 1
-        return [x.mid for x in pd.cut(vector, bins=m)]
+        return [x.mid for x in pd.cut(vector, bins=m)], True
 
-    return [x.mid for x in pd.cut(vector, bins=bins)]
+    if cardinality == bins:
+        return [x for x in vector], False
+
+    return [x.mid for x in pd.cut(vector, bins=bins)], True
 
 
 def plot_heatmap(
@@ -54,8 +70,12 @@ def plot_heatmap(
     output_path: os.PathLike | str | None = None,
 ):
     df = pd.DataFrame([p.to_dict() for p in result.responses])
-    token_out_bins = binning(df["num_tokens_output"], bins=bins_output_tokens)
-    token_in_bins = binning(df["num_tokens_input"], bins=bins_input_tokens)
+    token_out_bins, is_out_binned = binning(
+        df["num_tokens_output"], bins=bins_output_tokens
+    )
+    token_in_bins, is_in_binned = binning(
+        df["num_tokens_input"], bins=bins_input_tokens
+    )
     df["num_tokens_input"] = token_in_bins
     df["num_tokens_output"] = token_out_bins
 
@@ -93,8 +113,8 @@ def plot_heatmap(
             fmt=".03g",
         )
         fg.set_titles("{row_name}-{col_name}")
-        fg.set_xlabels("Input tokens")
-        fg.set_ylabels("Output tokens")
+        fg.set_xlabels(f"Input tokens ({'Binned' if is_in_binned else 'Exact'})")
+        fg.set_ylabels(f"Output tokens ({'Binned' if is_out_binned else 'Exact'})")
         for ax in fg.axes.ravel():
             ax.invert_yaxis()
             break
diff --git a/tests/test_plotting.py b/tests/test_plotting.py
index 4ae2f55..fbcde3e 100644
--- a/tests/test_plotting.py
+++ b/tests/test_plotting.py
@@ -28,23 +28,37 @@ def test_binning():
     vector = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10]
 
     # Test with default bins
-    result = binning(vector)
+    result, is_binned = binning(vector)
     assert len(result) == len(vector)
+    assert is_binned is True
     assert isinstance(result, list)
 
     # Test with specified bins
-    result = binning(vector, bins=5)
+    result, is_binned = binning(vector, bins=5)
     assert len(result) == len(vector)
+    assert is_binned is True
     assert len(set(result)) <= 5
 
 
 def test_binning_with_repeated_values():
     vector = [1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3, 3]
-    result = binning(vector)
+    result, is_binned = binning(vector)
     assert len(result) == len(vector)
+    assert is_binned is True
     assert len(set(result)) <= len(set(vector))
 
 
+def test_binning_preserves_matching_cardinality():
+    # A vector with cardinality 4 but very skewed distribution:
+    vector = ([1] * 100) + ([2] * 50) + [3] + [10000]
+    result, is_binned = binning(vector, 4)
+    # Result should keep same cardinality and exact values:
+    assert len(result) == len(vector)
+    assert is_binned is False
+    assert len(set(result)) == len(set(vector))
+    assert result == vector
+
+
 @patch("llmeter.plotting.sns")
 def test_plot_heatmap(mock_sns, sample_result: Result):
     fig, ax = plot_heatmap(sample_result)
@@ -82,17 +96,19 @@ def test_plot_sweep_results(mock_subplots, mock_dataframe):
 
 def test_binning_edge_cases():
     # Test with empty vector
-    assert binning([]) == []
+    assert binning([]) == ([], False)
 
     # Test with single value
-    result = binning([1])
+    result, is_binned = binning([1])
     assert len(result) == 1
+    assert is_binned is True
     assert result[0] == 1
 
     # Test with large range of values
     large_vector = list(range(1000))
-    result = binning(large_vector)
+    result, is_binned = binning(large_vector)
     assert len(result) == len(large_vector)
+    assert is_binned is True
     assert len(set(result)) < len(large_vector)
 
 
@@ -101,8 +117,9 @@ def test_binning_with_different_bin_sizes(
     bins: None | Literal[5] | Literal[10] | Literal[20],
 ):
     vector = list(range(100))
-    result = binning(vector, bins=bins)
+    result, is_binned = binning(vector, bins=bins)
     assert len(result) == len(vector)
+    assert is_binned is True
     if bins is not None:
         assert len(set(result)) <= bins