diff --git a/apps/cli/src/import/stream-import-flow.test.ts b/apps/cli/src/import/stream-import-flow.test.ts
index 6510de60..dd7f8d52 100644
--- a/apps/cli/src/import/stream-import-flow.test.ts
+++ b/apps/cli/src/import/stream-import-flow.test.ts
@@ -67,6 +67,27 @@ function writeTempDuplicateChatFile(dir: string): string {
   return filePath
 }
 
+function writeWeFlowImageExport(dir: string, filename: string, messageCount: number): string {
+  const filePath = path.join(dir, filename)
+  fs.writeFileSync(
+    filePath,
+    JSON.stringify({
+      weflow: { version: '1.0.0' },
+      session: { wxid: 'room@chatroom', displayName: 'Image Room', type: '群聊' },
+      messages: Array.from({ length: messageCount }, (_, index) => ({
+        localId: index + 1,
+        createTime: 1711468800,
+        type: '图片消息',
+        content: '[图片]',
+        isSend: 0,
+        senderUsername: 'wxid_alice',
+        senderDisplayName: 'Alice',
+      })),
+    })
+  )
+  return filePath
+}
+
 function writeBatchChatFile(dir: string, filename: string, groupId: string, content: string): string {
   const filePath = path.join(dir, filename)
   fs.writeFileSync(
@@ -475,6 +496,37 @@ test('autoImport reports the same exact-message deduplication on create and incr
   assert.equal(row.count, 1)
 })
 
+test('autoImport preserves same-second WeFlow message counts across overlapping exports', async (t) => {
+  const root = makeTempDir()
+  t.after(() => fs.rmSync(root, { recursive: true, force: true }))
+  fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'data', 'databases'), { recursive: true })
+  const manager = new DatabaseManager(createPathProvider(root), {
+    nativeBinding,
+    runtime: { version: '0.25.1', kind: 'cli' },
+  })
+  const firstExport = writeWeFlowImageExport(root, 'weflow-first.json', 2)
+  const overlappingExport = writeWeFlowImageExport(root, 'weflow-overlap.json', 3)
+
+  const created = await autoImport(manager, firstExport, { nativeBinding })
+  const incremental = await autoImport(manager, overlappingExport, { nativeBinding })
+  const repeated = await autoImport(manager, overlappingExport, { nativeBinding })
+
+  assert.equal(created.success, true)
+  assert.equal(created.newMessageCount, 2)
+  assert.equal(created.duplicateCount, 0)
+  assert.equal(incremental.success, true)
+  assert.equal(incremental.newMessageCount, 1)
+  assert.equal(incremental.duplicateCount, 2)
+  assert.equal(repeated.success, true)
+  assert.equal(repeated.newMessageCount, 0)
+  assert.equal(repeated.duplicateCount, 3)
+
+  const db = manager.openRawSessionDatabase(created.sessionId!, { readonly: true })
+  const row = db.prepare('SELECT COUNT(*) AS count FROM message').get() as { count: number }
+  db.close()
+  assert.equal(row.count, 3)
+})
+
 test('autoImport uses an explicit id for create and then forces incremental import', async () => {
   const root = makeTempDir()
   fs.mkdirSync(path.join(root, 'data', 'databases'), { recursive: true })
diff --git a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/incremental-importer.test.ts b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/incremental-importer.test.ts
index a18355e9..1a6847f9 100644
--- a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/incremental-importer.test.ts
+++ b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/incremental-importer.test.ts
@@ -512,6 +512,60 @@ test('preserves canonical dedup semantics while checking existing database candi
   }
 })
 
+test('bridges stable IDs to repeated fallback-only occurrences one for one', async (t) => {
+  const tempDir = makeTempDir()
+  t.after(() => fs.rmSync(tempDir, { recursive: true, force: true }))
+
+  const dbPath = path.join(tempDir, 'session.db')
+  const filePath = path.join(tempDir, 'incoming.json')
+  seedSessionDb(dbPath)
+  seedExistingMessage(dbPath, {})
+
+  const seededDb = openBetterSqliteDatabase(dbPath, { nativeBinding })
+  const member = seededDb.prepare('SELECT id FROM member WHERE platform_id = ?').get('wxid_alice') as { id: number }
+  seededDb
+    .prepare('INSERT INTO message (sender_id, ts, type, content) VALUES (?, ?, ?, ?)')
+    .run(member.id, 1780330832, 0, 'same message')
+  seededDb.close()
+
+  fs.writeFileSync(
+    filePath,
+    JSON.stringify({
+      weflow: { version: '1.0.0' },
+      session: { wxid: 'wxid_alice', displayName: 'Alice', type: '私聊' },
+      messages: ['msg-1', 'msg-2', 'msg-3'].map((platformMessageId, index) => ({
+        localId: index + 1,
+        platformMessageId,
+        createTime: 1780330832,
+        type: '文本消息',
+        content: 'same message',
+        senderUsername: 'wxid_alice',
+        senderDisplayName: 'Alice',
+      })),
+    })
+  )
+
+  const deps = createDeps(dbPath)
+  const analysis = await analyzeIncrementalImport('session', filePath, deps, { formatId: 'weflow' })
+  assert.equal(analysis.newMessageCount, 1)
+  assert.equal(analysis.duplicateCount, 2)
+
+  const result = await incrementalImport('session', filePath, deps, { formatId: 'weflow' })
+  assert.equal(result.success, true)
+  assert.equal(result.newMessageCount, 1)
+  assert.equal(result.batch?.duplicateCount, 2)
+
+  const db = openBetterSqliteDatabase(dbPath, { readonly: true, nativeBinding })
+  const rows = db.prepare('SELECT platform_message_id FROM message ORDER BY id').all() as Array<{
+    platform_message_id: string | null
+  }>
+  db.close()
+  assert.deepEqual(
+    rows.map((row) => row.platform_message_id),
+    [null, null, 'msg-3']
+  )
+})
+
 test('deduplicates repeated input across parser message batches', async (t) => {
   const tempDir = makeTempDir()
   t.after(() => fs.rmSync(tempDir, { recursive: true, force: true }))
diff --git a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/incremental-importer.ts b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/incremental-importer.ts
index 3c70894e..860734b4 100644
--- a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/incremental-importer.ts
+++ b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/incremental-importer.ts
@@ -25,7 +25,12 @@ import {
   type DedupMessage,
   type MessageDedupState,
 } from './message-deduplicator'
-import { normalizeSystemMemberName, SYSTEM_MEMBER_NAME, type ImportProgressCallback } from './streaming-importer'
+import {
+  normalizeSystemMemberName,
+  shouldPreserveFallbackMultiplicity,
+  SYSTEM_MEMBER_NAME,
+  type ImportProgressCallback,
+} from './streaming-importer'
 
 // ==================== Public interfaces ====================
 
@@ -109,8 +114,9 @@ interface ExistingMessageLookup {
   db: DatabaseAdapter
   maxMessageId: number
   hasFallbackOnlyMessages: boolean
-  consumedFallbackOnlyKeys: Set<string>
+  consumedFallbackOnlyOccurrenceCounts: Map<string, number>
   bridgedPlatformMessageIds: Set<string>
+  consumedFallbackOccurrenceCounts: Map<string, number>
   candidateStatement: PreparedStatement
   platformIdStatements: Map<number, PreparedStatement>
 }
@@ -159,8 +165,9 @@ function createExistingMessageLookup(db: DatabaseAdapter): ExistingMessageLookup
     db,
     maxMessageId,
     hasFallbackOnlyMessages,
-    consumedFallbackOnlyKeys: new Set<string>(),
+    consumedFallbackOnlyOccurrenceCounts: new Map<string, number>(),
     bridgedPlatformMessageIds: new Set<string>(),
+    consumedFallbackOccurrenceCounts: new Map<string, number>(),
     candidateStatement: db.prepare(
       `SELECT msg.type, msg.content, msg.reply_to_message_id, msg.platform_message_id
        FROM member m
@@ -229,7 +236,8 @@ function isExistingMessageDuplicate(
   lookup: ExistingMessageLookup,
   message: DedupMessage,
   existingBatchPlatformIds: Set<string>,
-  candidateCache: CandidateCache
+  candidateCache: CandidateCache,
+  preserveFallbackMultiplicity: boolean
 ): boolean {
   if (
     message.platformMessageId &&
@@ -241,20 +249,30 @@ function isExistingMessageDuplicate(
 
   const fallbackKey = generateFallbackMessageKey(message)
   if (message.platformMessageId) {
-    if (!lookup.hasFallbackOnlyMessages || lookup.consumedFallbackOnlyKeys.has(fallbackKey)) return false
-    const matchesFallbackOnly = getExistingCandidates(lookup, message, candidateCache).some(
+    if (!lookup.hasFallbackOnlyMessages) return false
+    const matchingFallbackOnlyCount = getExistingCandidates(lookup, message, candidateCache).filter(
       (candidate) => !candidate.platform_message_id && candidateFallbackKey(message, candidate) === fallbackKey
-    )
+    ).length
+    const consumedCount = lookup.consumedFallbackOnlyOccurrenceCounts.get(fallbackKey) ?? 0
+    const matchesFallbackOnly = preserveFallbackMultiplicity
+      ? consumedCount < matchingFallbackOnlyCount
+      : consumedCount === 0 && matchingFallbackOnlyCount > 0
     if (matchesFallbackOnly) {
-      lookup.consumedFallbackOnlyKeys.add(fallbackKey)
+      lookup.consumedFallbackOnlyOccurrenceCounts.set(fallbackKey, consumedCount + 1)
       lookup.bridgedPlatformMessageIds.add(message.platformMessageId)
     }
     return matchesFallbackOnly
   }
 
-  return getExistingCandidates(lookup, message, candidateCache).some(
+  const matchingCount = getExistingCandidates(lookup, message, candidateCache).filter(
     (candidate) => candidateFallbackKey(message, candidate) === fallbackKey
-  )
+  ).length
+  if (!preserveFallbackMultiplicity) return matchingCount > 0
+
+  const consumedCount = lookup.consumedFallbackOccurrenceCounts.get(fallbackKey) ?? 0
+  if (consumedCount >= matchingCount) return false
+  lookup.consumedFallbackOccurrenceCounts.set(fallbackKey, consumedCount + 1)
+  return true
 }
 
 function isDuplicate(
@@ -262,9 +280,13 @@ function isDuplicate(
   incomingState: MessageDedupState,
   message: DedupMessage,
   existingBatchPlatformIds: Set<string>,
-  candidateCache: CandidateCache
+  candidateCache: CandidateCache,
+  preserveFallbackMultiplicity: boolean
 ): boolean {
-  if (isExistingMessageDuplicate(lookup, message, existingBatchPlatformIds, candidateCache)) return true
+  if (
+    isExistingMessageDuplicate(lookup, message, existingBatchPlatformIds, candidateCache, preserveFallbackMultiplicity)
+  )
+    return true
   return registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(message, incomingState)
 }
 
@@ -298,10 +320,11 @@ export async function analyzeIncrementalImport(
   let duplicateCount = 0
   let platform = formatFeature.platform
   const mapPlatformId = createPlatformIdMapper(options?.senderPlatformIdMappings)
+  const preserveFallbackMultiplicity = shouldPreserveFallbackMultiplicity(formatFeature.id)
 
   try {
     const existingLookup = createExistingMessageLookup(db)
-    const incomingState = createMessageDedupState()
+    const incomingState = createMessageDedupState([], [], [], { preserveFallbackMultiplicity })
 
     await streamParseFile(
       filePath,
@@ -336,7 +359,8 @@ export async function analyzeIncrementalImport(
                 incomingState,
                 { ...msg, timestamp },
                 existingBatchPlatformIds,
-                candidateCache
+                candidateCache,
+                preserveFallbackMultiplicity
               )
             ) {
               duplicateCount++
@@ -378,10 +402,11 @@ export async function incrementalImport(
   const metaUpdateMode = options?.metaUpdateMode ?? 'patch'
   const memberUpdateMode = options?.memberUpdateMode ?? 'upsert'
   const mapPlatformId = createPlatformIdMapper(options?.senderPlatformIdMappings)
+  const preserveFallbackMultiplicity = shouldPreserveFallbackMultiplicity(formatFeature.id)
 
   try {
     const existingLookup = createExistingMessageLookup(db)
-    const incomingState = createMessageDedupState()
+    const incomingState = createMessageDedupState([], [], [], { preserveFallbackMultiplicity })
 
     const memberIdMap = new Map<string, number>()
     const existingMembers = db.prepare('SELECT id, platform_id FROM member').all() as Array<{
@@ -526,7 +551,8 @@ export async function incrementalImport(
                 incomingState,
                 { ...msg, timestamp },
                 existingBatchPlatformIds,
-                candidateCache
+                candidateCache,
+                preserveFallbackMultiplicity
               )
             ) {
               duplicateCount++
diff --git a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/message-deduplicator.test.ts b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/message-deduplicator.test.ts
index c26e28f9..2a0f829d 100644
--- a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/message-deduplicator.test.ts
+++ b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/message-deduplicator.test.ts
@@ -33,3 +33,26 @@ test('bridges one fallback-only copy without collapsing later distinct platform
   assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate({ ...baseMessage, platformMessageId: 'msg-1' }, state), true)
   assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate({ ...baseMessage, platformMessageId: 'msg-2' }, state), false)
 })
+
+test('preserves repeated fallback occurrences when multiplicity is enabled', () => {
+  const state = createMessageDedupState([], [], [], { preserveFallbackMultiplicity: true })
+
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(baseMessage, state), false)
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(baseMessage, state), false)
+})
+
+test('bridges fallback-only and stable-ID occurrences one for one', () => {
+  const fallbackFirst = createMessageDedupState([], [], [], { preserveFallbackMultiplicity: true })
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(baseMessage, fallbackFirst), false)
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(baseMessage, fallbackFirst), false)
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate({ ...baseMessage, platformMessageId: 'msg-1' }, fallbackFirst), true)
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate({ ...baseMessage, platformMessageId: 'msg-2' }, fallbackFirst), true)
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate({ ...baseMessage, platformMessageId: 'msg-3' }, fallbackFirst), false)
+
+  const stableFirst = createMessageDedupState([], [], [], { preserveFallbackMultiplicity: true })
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate({ ...baseMessage, platformMessageId: 'msg-1' }, stableFirst), false)
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate({ ...baseMessage, platformMessageId: 'msg-2' }, stableFirst), false)
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(baseMessage, stableFirst), true)
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(baseMessage, stableFirst), true)
+  assert.equal(registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(baseMessage, stableFirst), false)
+})
diff --git a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/message-deduplicator.ts b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/message-deduplicator.ts
index 1042e96d..7da16206 100644
--- a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/message-deduplicator.ts
+++ b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/message-deduplicator.ts
@@ -8,6 +8,14 @@ export interface MessageDedupState {
   fallbackKeys: Set<string>
   /** Unmatched fallback keys whose accepted message did not have a stable platform ID. */
   fallbackOnlyKeys: Set<string>
+  preserveFallbackMultiplicity: boolean
+  /** Positive = unmatched ID-less occurrences; negative = unmatched stable-ID occurrences. */
+  fallbackMultiplicityBalances: Map<string, number>
+}
+
+export interface MessageDedupOptions {
+  /** Preserve repeated ID-less messages that share a fallback fingerprint. */
+  preserveFallbackMultiplicity?: boolean
 }
 
 export interface DedupMessage {
@@ -48,15 +56,36 @@ export function generateFallbackMessageKey(message: Omit<DedupMessage, 'platform
 export function createMessageDedupState(
   platformMessageIds: Iterable<string> = [],
   fallbackKeys: Iterable<string> = [],
-  fallbackOnlyKeys: Iterable<string> = []
+  fallbackOnlyKeys: Iterable<string> = [],
+  options: MessageDedupOptions = {}
 ): MessageDedupState {
+  const fallbackKeySet = new Set(fallbackKeys)
+  const fallbackOnlyKeySet = new Set(fallbackOnlyKeys)
+  const fallbackMultiplicityBalances = new Map<string, number>()
+  if (options.preserveFallbackMultiplicity) {
+    for (const key of fallbackKeySet) fallbackMultiplicityBalances.set(key, -1)
+    for (const key of fallbackOnlyKeySet) fallbackMultiplicityBalances.set(key, 1)
+  }
   return {
     platformMessageIds: new Set(platformMessageIds),
-    fallbackKeys: new Set(fallbackKeys),
-    fallbackOnlyKeys: new Set(fallbackOnlyKeys),
+    fallbackKeys: fallbackKeySet,
+    fallbackOnlyKeys: fallbackOnlyKeySet,
+    preserveFallbackMultiplicity: options.preserveFallbackMultiplicity ?? false,
+    fallbackMultiplicityBalances,
   }
 }
 
+function setFallbackMultiplicityBalance(state: MessageDedupState, key: string, balance: number): void {
+  if (balance === 0) state.fallbackMultiplicityBalances.delete(key)
+  else state.fallbackMultiplicityBalances.set(key, balance)
+}
+
+export function hasUnmatchedFallbackOnlyMessage(state: MessageDedupState, fallbackKey: string): boolean {
+  return state.preserveFallbackMultiplicity
+    ? (state.fallbackMultiplicityBalances.get(fallbackKey) ?? 0) > 0
+    : state.fallbackOnlyKeys.has(fallbackKey)
+}
+
 /**
  * Canonical import dedup rule shared by file imports and JSON Push: prefer stable platform
  * message IDs and fall back to timestamp + sender platform ID + type + normalized content + reply target.
@@ -68,6 +97,16 @@ export function registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(message: DedupMessage, state: M
     if (state.platformMessageIds.has(message.platformMessageId)) return true
     state.platformMessageIds.add(message.platformMessageId)
 
+    if (state.preserveFallbackMultiplicity) {
+      const balance = state.fallbackMultiplicityBalances.get(key) ?? 0
+      if (balance > 0) {
+        setFallbackMultiplicityBalance(state, key, balance - 1)
+        return true
+      }
+      setFallbackMultiplicityBalance(state, key, balance - 1)
+      return false
+    }
+
     // Only bridge ID-bearing messages to fallback-only copies. Comparing this
     // key against other ID-bearing messages would incorrectly merge distinct
     // platform messages that happen to have identical content and timestamps.
@@ -76,6 +115,16 @@ export function registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(message: DedupMessage, state: M
     return false
   }
 
+  if (state.preserveFallbackMultiplicity) {
+    const balance = state.fallbackMultiplicityBalances.get(key) ?? 0
+    if (balance < 0) {
+      setFallbackMultiplicityBalance(state, key, balance + 1)
+      return true
+    }
+    setFallbackMultiplicityBalance(state, key, balance + 1)
+    return false
+  }
+
   if (state.fallbackKeys.has(key)) return true
   state.fallbackKeys.add(key)
   state.fallbackOnlyKeys.add(key)
diff --git a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/streaming-importer.ts b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/streaming-importer.ts
index aed6cad1..44515755 100644
--- a/packages/node-runtime/src/import/streaming-importer.ts
+++ b/packages/node-runtime/src/import/streaming-importer.ts
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ import {
   getPreprocessor,
   needsPreprocess,
   isNativeFormatAvailable,
+  PARSER_FORMAT_IDS,
   type ParsedMeta,
   type FormatFeature,
   type ParseProgress,
@@ -33,6 +34,10 @@ import { performance } from 'node:perf_hooks'
 import { MessageBatchInserter, type MessageInsertRow } from './message-batch-inserter'
 import { createMessageDedupState, registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate, type DedupMessage } from './message-deduplicator'
 
+export function shouldPreserveFallbackMultiplicity(formatId: string): boolean {
+  return formatId === PARSER_FORMAT_IDS.WEFLOW || formatId === PARSER_FORMAT_IDS.ECHOTRACE
+}
+
 // ==================== Public interfaces ====================
 
 export interface SkipReasons {
@@ -524,7 +529,9 @@ async function streamImportSingle(
     skippedInvalidTimestamp: 0,
     skippedNoType: 0,
   }
-  const dedupState = createMessageDedupState()
+  const dedupState = createMessageDedupState([], [], [], {
+    preserveFallbackMultiplicity: shouldPreserveFallbackMultiplicity(formatFeature.id),
+  })
 
   logger?.info('Starting streamParseFile...')
   const parsePipelineStartedAt = now()
@@ -940,7 +947,9 @@ export async function analyzeNewImport(
 
   let meta: { name: string; platform: string; type: string } | null = null
   const memberSet = new Set<string>()
-  const dedupState = createMessageDedupState()
+  const dedupState = createMessageDedupState([], [], [], {
+    preserveFallbackMultiplicity: shouldPreserveFallbackMultiplicity(formatFeature.id),
+  })
   let totalMessages = 0
   let newMessageCount = 0
   let duplicateCount = 0
diff --git a/packages/node-runtime/src/merger/__tests__/merger.test.ts b/packages/node-runtime/src/merger/__tests__/merger.test.ts
index 4dd0e9e2..a6a4df3b 100644
--- a/packages/node-runtime/src/merger/__tests__/merger.test.ts
+++ b/packages/node-runtime/src/merger/__tests__/merger.test.ts
@@ -111,6 +111,38 @@ describe('buildMergedOutput', () => {
     assert.equal(result.chatLabData.meta.sources.length, 2)
   })
 
+  it('preserves the maximum fallback occurrence count across overlapping sources', () => {
+    const meta: MergerSourceMeta = { name: 'chat', platform: 'wechat', type: 'group', groupId: 'room' }
+    const repeatedImage: MergerInputMessage = {
+      senderPlatformId: 'u1',
+      timestamp: 100,
+      type: 1,
+      content: '[图片]',
+    }
+    const source1 = createMockSource(
+      meta,
+      [{ platformId: 'u1', accountName: 'Alice' }],
+      [{ ...repeatedImage }, { ...repeatedImage }]
+    )
+    const source2 = createMockSource(
+      meta,
+      [{ platformId: 'u1', accountName: 'Alice' }],
+      [{ ...repeatedImage }, { ...repeatedImage }, { ...repeatedImage }]
+    )
+
+    const sources = [
+      { source: source1, filename: 'first.json' },
+      { source: source2, filename: 'overlap.json' },
+    ]
+    const result = buildMergedOutput(sources, 'Merged')
+    const reversed = buildMergedOutput([...sources].reverse(), 'Merged')
+    const conflicts = checkConflictsFromSources(sources)
+
+    assert.equal(result.chatLabData.messages.length, 3)
+    assert.equal(reversed.chatLabData.messages.length, 3)
+    assert.equal(conflicts.totalMessages, 3)
+  })
+
   it('detects mixed platform when sources differ', () => {
     const s1 = createMockSource(
       { name: 'a', platform: 'qq', type: 'group' },
diff --git a/packages/node-runtime/src/merger/index.ts b/packages/node-runtime/src/merger/index.ts
index 490463a6..9a93538e 100644
--- a/packages/node-runtime/src/merger/index.ts
+++ b/packages/node-runtime/src/merger/index.ts
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ import { CHATLAB_FORMAT_VERSION } from '@openchatlab/shared-types'
 import {
   createMessageDedupState,
   generateFallbackMessageKey,
+  hasUnmatchedFallbackOnlyMessage,
   registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate,
 } from '../import/message-deduplicator'
 
@@ -95,6 +96,37 @@ interface MessageScopeContext {
   messageBridgeFamily?: string
 }
 
+function createFallbackOccurrenceTracker(): (message: MergerInputMessage, sourceIndex: number) => boolean {
+  // Overlapping exports contribute the maximum occurrence count for each
+  // fallback key, rather than collapsing to one message or summing all copies.
+  const maximumOccurrences = new Map<string, number>()
+  const sourceOccurrences = new Map<number, Map<string, number>>()
+
+  return (message, sourceIndex) => {
+    if (message.platformMessageId) return false
+
+    const fallbackKey = generateFallbackMessageKey({
+      timestamp: message.timestamp,
+      senderPlatformId: message.senderPlatformId,
+      type: message.type,
+      content: message.content ?? null,
+      replyToMessageId: message.replyToMessageId,
+    })
+    let occurrences = sourceOccurrences.get(sourceIndex)
+    if (!occurrences) {
+      occurrences = new Map<string, number>()
+      sourceOccurrences.set(sourceIndex, occurrences)
+    }
+    const occurrence = (occurrences.get(fallbackKey) ?? 0) + 1
+    occurrences.set(fallbackKey, occurrence)
+
+    const previousMaximum = maximumOccurrences.get(fallbackKey) ?? 0
+    if (occurrence <= previousMaximum) return true
+    maximumOccurrences.set(fallbackKey, occurrence)
+    return false
+  }
+}
+
 function createMessageScopeResolver(contexts: Iterable<MessageScopeContext>): {
   addMessage: (message: MergerInputMessage, context: MessageScopeContext) => void
   complete: () => void
@@ -241,23 +273,24 @@ export function checkConflictsFromSources(
   const normalizeMessageId = createMessageIdNormalizer(
     preparedSources.map(({ sourceIndex }) => scopeResolver.resolve(sourceIndex))
   )
-  const dedupState = createMessageDedupState()
+  const dedupState = createMessageDedupState([], [], [], { preserveFallbackMultiplicity: true })
+  const isCoveredFallbackOccurrence = createFallbackOccurrenceTracker()
   let totalMessages = 0
 
   for (const { msg, sourceIndex, platform } of allMessages) {
     const messageScope = scopeResolver.resolve(sourceIndex)
     const senderPlatformId = normalizePlatformId(msg.senderPlatformId, platform, collidingIds)
-    const duplicate = registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(
-      {
-        platformMessageId: normalizeMessageId(msg.platformMessageId, messageScope),
-        timestamp: msg.timestamp,
-        senderPlatformId,
-        type: msg.type,
-        content: msg.content ?? null,
-        replyToMessageId: normalizeMessageId(msg.replyToMessageId, messageScope),
-      },
-      dedupState
-    )
+    const dedupMessage = {
+      platformMessageId: normalizeMessageId(msg.platformMessageId, messageScope),
+      timestamp: msg.timestamp,
+      senderPlatformId,
+      type: msg.type,
+      content: msg.content ?? null,
+      replyToMessageId: normalizeMessageId(msg.replyToMessageId, messageScope),
+    }
+    const duplicate =
+      isCoveredFallbackOccurrence(dedupMessage, sourceIndex) ||
+      registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(dedupMessage, dedupState)
     if (!duplicate) totalMessages++
   }
 
@@ -324,8 +357,9 @@ export function buildMergedOutput(
 
   // Streaming dedup: prefer stable platform message IDs and use the content
   // fingerprint only for messages that do not have one.
-  const dedupState = createMessageDedupState()
-  const fallbackOnlyMessageIndexes = new Map<string, number>()
+  const dedupState = createMessageDedupState([], [], [], { preserveFallbackMultiplicity: true })
+  const isCoveredFallbackOccurrence = createFallbackOccurrenceTracker()
+  const fallbackOnlyMessageIndexes = new Map<string, number[]>()
   const mergedMessages: ChatLabMergedMessage[] = []
 
   for (const { source, meta, sourceIndex } of metas) {
@@ -345,18 +379,20 @@ export function buildMergedOutput(
           replyToMessageId,
         }
         const fallbackKey = generateFallbackMessageKey(dedupMessage)
+        if (isCoveredFallbackOccurrence(dedupMessage, sourceIndex)) continue
         const shouldBackfillId = Boolean(
           platformMessageId &&
           !dedupState.platformMessageIds.has(platformMessageId) &&
-          dedupState.fallbackOnlyKeys.has(fallbackKey)
+          hasUnmatchedFallbackOnlyMessage(dedupState, fallbackKey)
         )
 
         if (registerMessageAndCheckDuplicate(dedupMessage, dedupState)) {
           if (shouldBackfillId) {
-            const retainedIndex = fallbackOnlyMessageIndexes.get(fallbackKey)
+            const retainedIndexes = fallbackOnlyMessageIndexes.get(fallbackKey)
+            const retainedIndex = retainedIndexes?.shift()
             if (retainedIndex !== undefined) {
               mergedMessages[retainedIndex].platformMessageId = platformMessageId
-              fallbackOnlyMessageIndexes.delete(fallbackKey)
+              if (retainedIndexes?.length === 0) fallbackOnlyMessageIndexes.delete(fallbackKey)
             }
           }
           continue
@@ -373,7 +409,11 @@ export function buildMergedOutput(
           content: msg.content,
           replyToMessageId,
         })
-        if (!platformMessageId) fallbackOnlyMessageIndexes.set(fallbackKey, retainedIndex)
+        if (!platformMessageId) {
+          const retainedIndexes = fallbackOnlyMessageIndexes.get(fallbackKey) ?? []
+          retainedIndexes.push(retainedIndex)
+          fallbackOnlyMessageIndexes.set(fallbackKey, retainedIndexes)
+        }
       }
     })
   }