diff --git a/src/main.ts b/src/main.ts
index fda1ea3..f05d316 100644
--- a/src/main.ts
+++ b/src/main.ts
@@ -69,6 +69,24 @@ async function runInCI(
       )
       : DEFAULT_CONFIG;
 
+    // Cost against the project's stored production statistics when available, so
+    // CI numbers reflect real prod cardinality instead of synthetic assumptions.
+    // Scoped server-side to this connection's project; null when none is stored
+    // or the pull fails, in which case the runner falls back to synthetic stats.
+    const productionStats = await api.getProductionStats().catch((err) => {
+      log.warn(
+        `Failed to fetch production stats via RPC: ${err}. Falling back to synthetic stats`,
+        "main",
+      );
+      return null;
+    });
+    if (productionStats && productionStats.length > 0) {
+      log.info(
+        `Costing against ${productionStats.length} table(s) of stored production statistics`,
+        "main",
+      );
+    }
+
     const source: RecentQuerySource = logPath
       ? new PgbadgerSource(logPath)
       : remoteDbManager.getConnectorFor(sourcePostgresUrl);
@@ -80,6 +98,7 @@ async function runInCI(
       maxCost,
       ignoredQueryHashes: config.ignoredQueryHashes,
       remote,
+      productionStats: productionStats ?? undefined,
     });
     let allResults: QueryProcessResult[];
     let reportContext;
diff --git a/src/runner.test.ts b/src/runner.test.ts
index 0ddbe3b..dacb7f0 100644
--- a/src/runner.test.ts
+++ b/src/runner.test.ts
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 import { test, expect, describe } from "vitest";
+import type { ExportedStats } from "@query-doctor/core";
 import { buildQueries } from "./reporters/site-api.ts";
+import { Runner } from "./runner.ts";
 import type { OptimizedQuery } from "./sql/recent-query.ts";
 
 function fakeQuery(hash: string, state: string): OptimizedQuery {
@@ -28,3 +30,53 @@ describe("queryStats.analyzed source of truth", () => {
     expect(buildQueries(results).length).toBe(3);
   });
 });
+
+describe("Runner.determineStatsMode precedence", () => {
+  const TABLE: ExportedStats = {
+    tableName: "users",
+    schemaName: "public",
+    relpages: 10,
+    reltuples: 166_000,
+    relallvisible: 8,
+    columns: [],
+    indexes: [],
+  };
+
+  const exportMode = {
+    type: "static",
+    stats: {
+      kind: "fromStatisticsExport",
+      source: { kind: "inline" },
+      stats: [TABLE],
+    },
+  };
+
+  const syntheticMode = {
+    type: "static",
+    stats: { kind: "fromAssumption", reltuples: 10_000_000 },
+  };
+
+  test("costs against the production stats export when production stats are provided", async () => {
+    expect(await Runner.determineStatsMode(undefined, [TABLE])).toEqual(
+      exportMode,
+    );
+  });
+
+  test("production stats take precedence over a stats file path", async () => {
+    // The path is never read because production stats win — proven by the
+    // absence of a filesystem error for this non-existent path.
+    expect(
+      await Runner.determineStatsMode("/nonexistent/stats.json", [TABLE]),
+    ).toEqual(exportMode);
+  });
+
+  test("falls back to synthetic assumption when production stats are empty", async () => {
+    expect(await Runner.determineStatsMode(undefined, [])).toEqual(
+      syntheticMode,
+    );
+  });
+
+  test("falls back to synthetic assumption when no stats source is provided", async () => {
+    expect(await Runner.determineStatsMode()).toEqual(syntheticMode);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/src/runner.ts b/src/runner.ts
index 4fcb3e3..de1c8ab 100644
--- a/src/runner.ts
+++ b/src/runner.ts
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ import { Connectable } from "./sync/connectable.ts";
 import { Remote, StatisticsStrategy } from "./remote/remote.ts";
 import { ConnectionManager } from "./sync/connection-manager.ts";
 import type { OptimizedQuery } from "./sql/recent-query.ts";
-import { ExportedStats } from "@query-doctor/core";
+import { ExportedStats, Statistics } from "@query-doctor/core";
 import { readFile } from "node:fs/promises";
 import { buildQueries } from "./reporters/site-api.ts";
 
@@ -34,6 +34,9 @@ export class Runner {
     source: RecentQuerySource;
     ignoredQueryHashes?: string[];
     remote?: Remote;
+    // Real production statistics pulled from the Site API. When present, queries
+    // are costed against true prod cardinality instead of synthetic assumptions.
+    productionStats?: ExportedStats[];
   }) {
     const remote = options.remote ?? new Remote(
       options.targetPostgresUrl,
@@ -42,7 +45,7 @@ export class Runner {
       { disableQueryLoader: true }
     );
     await remote.syncFrom(options.sourcePostgresUrl,
-      await Runner.determineStatsMode(options.statisticsPath)
+      await Runner.determineStatsMode(options.statisticsPath, options.productionStats)
     );
     await remote.optimizer.finish;
     return new Runner(
@@ -53,9 +56,19 @@ export class Runner {
     );
   }
 
-  // CI either always pulls data from a file or sets a default. Never pulls from source
-  static async determineStatsMode(statsPath?: string): Promise<StatisticsStrategy> {
-    // TODO: grab recent stats from API if they exist
+  // Stats-mode precedence for CI: real production stats pulled from the Site API
+  // win, then an explicit stats file, then synthetic assumptions. CI never dumps
+  // stats from the ephemeral target database itself.
+  static async determineStatsMode(
+    statsPath?: string,
+    productionStats?: ExportedStats[],
+  ): Promise<StatisticsStrategy> {
+    if (productionStats && productionStats.length > 0) {
+      return {
+        type: "static",
+        stats: Statistics.statsModeFromExport(productionStats),
+      };
+    }
     if (statsPath) {
       const file = await readFile(statsPath);
       const rawStats = JSON.parse(file.toString())