diff --git a/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/instance.go b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/instance.go
index 978b7148bda..7943707b39a 100644
--- a/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/instance.go
+++ b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/instance.go
@@ -79,6 +79,9 @@ func (d *PyroscopeDatasource) CallResource(ctx context.Context, req *backend.Cal
 	if req.Path == "labelValues" {
 		return d.labelValues(ctx, req, sender)
 	}
+	if req.Path == "profileMetadata" {
+		return d.profileMetadata(ctx, req, sender)
+	}
 	return sender.Send(&backend.CallResourceResponse{
 		Status: 404,
 	})
@@ -216,6 +219,32 @@ func (d *PyroscopeDatasource) labelValues(ctx context.Context, req *backend.Call
 	return nil
 }
 
+// profileMetadata returns the embedded profile-metrics.json data containing metadata
+// for all known profile types, including their aggregation type (cumulative/instant),
+// units, descriptions, and grouping information.
+func (d *PyroscopeDatasource) profileMetadata(ctx context.Context, _ *backend.CallResourceRequest, sender backend.CallResourceResponseSender) error {
+	ctxLogger := logger.FromContext(ctx)
+
+	registry := GetProfileMetadataRegistry()
+
+	jsonData, err := json.Marshal(registry.profiles)
+	if err != nil {
+		ctxLogger.Error("Failed to marshal profile metadata", "error", err, "function", logEntrypoint())
+		return sender.Send(&backend.CallResourceResponse{
+			Status: 500,
+			Body:   []byte(`{"error": "Failed to marshal profile metadata"}`),
+		})
+	}
+
+	return sender.Send(&backend.CallResourceResponse{
+		Status: 200,
+		Body:   jsonData,
+		Headers: map[string][]string{
+			"Content-Type": {"application/json"},
+		},
+	})
+}
+
 // QueryData handles multiple queries and returns multiple responses.
 // req contains the queries []DataQuery (where each query contains RefID as a unique identifier).
 // The QueryDataResponse contains a map of RefID to the response for each query, and each response
diff --git a/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/profile-metrics.json b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/profile-metrics.json
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..5912e37175e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/profile-metrics.json
@@ -0,0 +1,162 @@
+{
+  "block:contentions:count:contentions:count": {
+    "id": "block:contentions:count:contentions:count",
+    "description": "Number of blocking contentions",
+    "type": "contentions",
+    "group": "block",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "block:delay:nanoseconds:contentions:count": {
+    "id": "block:delay:nanoseconds:contentions:count",
+    "description": "Time spent in blocking delays",
+    "type": "delay",
+    "group": "block",
+    "unit": "ns",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count": {
+    "id": "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count",
+    "description": "Number of goroutines",
+    "type": "goroutine",
+    "group": "goroutine",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "instant"
+  },
+  "goroutines:goroutine:count:goroutine:count": {
+    "id": "goroutines:goroutine:count:goroutine:count",
+    "description": "Number of goroutines",
+    "type": "goroutine",
+    "group": "goroutine",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "instant"
+  },
+  "memory:alloc_in_new_tlab_bytes:bytes::": {
+    "id": "memory:alloc_in_new_tlab_bytes:bytes::",
+    "description": "Size of memory allocated inside Thread-Local Allocation Buffers (TLAB)",
+    "type": "alloc_in_new_tlab_bytes",
+    "group": "memory",
+    "unit": "bytes",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "memory:alloc_in_new_tlab_objects:count::": {
+    "id": "memory:alloc_in_new_tlab_objects:count::",
+    "description": "Number of objects allocated inside Thread-Local Allocation Buffers (TLAB)",
+    "type": "alloc_in_new_tlab_objects",
+    "group": "memory",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "memory:alloc_objects:count:space:bytes": {
+    "id": "memory:alloc_objects:count:space:bytes",
+    "description": "Number of objects allocated",
+    "type": "alloc_objects",
+    "group": "memory",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "memory:alloc_space:bytes:space:bytes": {
+    "id": "memory:alloc_space:bytes:space:bytes",
+    "description": "Size of memory allocated in the heap",
+    "type": "alloc_space",
+    "group": "memory",
+    "unit": "bytes",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "memory:inuse_objects:count:space:bytes": {
+    "id": "memory:inuse_objects:count:space:bytes",
+    "description": "Number of objects currently in use",
+    "type": "inuse_objects",
+    "group": "memory",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "instant"
+  },
+  "memory:inuse_space:bytes:space:bytes": {
+    "id": "memory:inuse_space:bytes:space:bytes",
+    "description": "Size of memory currently in use",
+    "type": "inuse_space",
+    "group": "memory",
+    "unit": "bytes",
+    "aggregationType": "instant"
+  },
+  "mutex:contentions:count:contentions:count": {
+    "id": "mutex:contentions:count:contentions:count",
+    "description": "Number of observed mutex contentions",
+    "type": "contentions",
+    "group": "mutex",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "mutex:delay:nanoseconds:contentions:count": {
+    "id": "mutex:delay:nanoseconds:contentions:count",
+    "description": "Time spent waiting due to mutex contentions",
+    "type": "delay",
+    "group": "mutex",
+    "unit": "ns",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "process_cpu:alloc_samples:count:cpu:nanoseconds": {
+    "id": "process_cpu:alloc_samples:count:cpu:nanoseconds",
+    "description": "Number of memory allocation samples during CPU time",
+    "type": "alloc_samples",
+    "group": "memory",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "process_cpu:alloc_size:bytes:cpu:nanoseconds": {
+    "id": "process_cpu:alloc_size:bytes:cpu:nanoseconds",
+    "description": "Size of memory allocated during CPU time",
+    "type": "alloc_size",
+    "group": "alloc_size",
+    "unit": "bytes",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "process_cpu:cpu:nanoseconds:cpu:nanoseconds": {
+    "id": "process_cpu:cpu:nanoseconds:cpu:nanoseconds",
+    "description": "CPU time consumed",
+    "type": "cpu",
+    "group": "process_cpu",
+    "unit": "ns",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "process_cpu:exception:count:cpu:nanoseconds": {
+    "id": "process_cpu:exception:count:cpu:nanoseconds",
+    "description": "Number of exceptions within the sampled CPU time",
+    "type": "exceptions",
+    "group": "exceptions",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "process_cpu:lock_count:count:cpu:nanoseconds": {
+    "id": "process_cpu:lock_count:count:cpu:nanoseconds",
+    "description": "Number of lock acquisitions attempted during CPU time",
+    "type": "lock_count",
+    "group": "locks",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "instant"
+  },
+  "process_cpu:lock_time:nanoseconds:cpu:nanoseconds": {
+    "id": "process_cpu:lock_time:nanoseconds:cpu:nanoseconds",
+    "description": "Cumulative time spent acquiring locks",
+    "type": "lock_time",
+    "group": "locks",
+    "unit": "ns",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "process_cpu:samples:count::milliseconds": {
+    "id": "process_cpu:samples:count::milliseconds",
+    "description": "Number of process samples collected",
+    "type": "samples",
+    "group": "process_cpu",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "cumulative"
+  },
+  "process_cpu:samples:count:cpu:nanoseconds": {
+    "id": "process_cpu:samples:count:cpu:nanoseconds",
+    "description": "Number of samples collected over CPU time",
+    "type": "samples",
+    "group": "process_cpu",
+    "unit": "short",
+    "aggregationType": "instant"
+  }
+}
diff --git a/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/profile_metadata.go b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/profile_metadata.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..6f778acef49
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/profile_metadata.go
@@ -0,0 +1,89 @@
+package pyroscope
+
+import (
+	_ "embed"
+	"encoding/json"
+	"sync"
+
+	"github.com/grafana/grafana-plugin-sdk-go/backend"
+	"github.com/grafana/grafana-plugin-sdk-go/backend/log"
+)
+
+//go:embed profile-metrics.json
+var profileMetricsJSON []byte
+
+type ProfileMetadata struct {
+	ID              string `json:"id"`
+	Description     string `json:"description"`
+	Type            string `json:"type"`
+	Group           string `json:"group"`
+	Unit            string `json:"unit"`
+	AggregationType string `json:"aggregationType"`
+}
+
+type ProfileMetadataRegistry struct {
+	profiles map[string]*ProfileMetadata
+	mu       sync.RWMutex
+	logger   log.Logger
+}
+
+var (
+	registry     *ProfileMetadataRegistry
+	registryOnce sync.Once
+)
+
+// GetProfileMetadataRegistry returns the singleton instance of the profile metadata registry
+func GetProfileMetadataRegistry() *ProfileMetadataRegistry {
+	registryOnce.Do(func() {
+		registry = &ProfileMetadataRegistry{
+			profiles: make(map[string]*ProfileMetadata),
+			logger:   backend.NewLoggerWith("logger", "tsdb.pyroscope.profile-metadata"),
+		}
+		registry.loadProfileMetadata()
+	})
+	return registry
+}
+
+// loadProfileMetadata loads the profile metadata from the embedded JSON file
+func (r *ProfileMetadataRegistry) loadProfileMetadata() {
+	var profilesMap map[string]*ProfileMetadata
+	err := json.Unmarshal(profileMetricsJSON, &profilesMap)
+	if err != nil {
+		r.logger.Error("Failed to parse embedded profile-metrics.json", "error", err)
+		return
+	}
+
+	r.mu.Lock()
+	defer r.mu.Unlock()
+	r.profiles = profilesMap
+	r.logger.Info("Loaded profile metadata", "count", len(profilesMap))
+}
+
+// GetProfileMetadata returns the metadata for a given profile type ID
+func (r *ProfileMetadataRegistry) GetProfileMetadata(profileTypeID string) *ProfileMetadata {
+	r.mu.RLock()
+	defer r.mu.RUnlock()
+	return r.profiles[profileTypeID]
+}
+
+// IsCumulativeProfile returns true if the profile type requires rate calculation
+func (r *ProfileMetadataRegistry) IsCumulativeProfile(profileTypeID string) bool {
+	metadata := r.GetProfileMetadata(profileTypeID)
+	if metadata == nil {
+		r.logger.Debug("Profile metadata not found, using fallback logic", "profileTypeID", profileTypeID)
+		return isCumulativeProfileUnitFallback(getUnits(profileTypeID))
+	}
+	return metadata.AggregationType == "cumulative"
+}
+
+// isCumulativeProfileUnitFallback is the (old) fallback logic for unknown profile types
+func isCumulativeProfileUnitFallback(unit string) bool {
+	switch unit {
+	case "ns":
+		return true
+	case "bytes":
+		return true
+	default:
+		return false
+	}
+}
diff --git a/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/profile_metadata_test.go b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/profile_metadata_test.go
new file mode 100644
index 00000000000..8c43884969f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/profile_metadata_test.go
@@ -0,0 +1,49 @@
+package pyroscope
+
+import (
+	"testing"
+
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
+)
+
+func TestProfileMetadataRegistry(t *testing.T) {
+	registry := GetProfileMetadataRegistry()
+
+	t.Run("CPU profile is cumulative", func(t *testing.T) {
+		result := registry.IsCumulativeProfile("process_cpu:cpu:nanoseconds:cpu:nanoseconds")
+		require.True(t, result)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("Memory allocation is cumulative", func(t *testing.T) {
+		result := registry.IsCumulativeProfile("memory:alloc_space:bytes:space:bytes")
+		require.True(t, result)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("Goroutines are instant", func(t *testing.T) {
+		result := registry.IsCumulativeProfile("goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
+		require.False(t, result)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("Memory in-use is instant", func(t *testing.T) {
+		result := registry.IsCumulativeProfile("memory:inuse_space:bytes:space:bytes")
+		require.False(t, result)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("Edge case: mutex contentions count is cumulative", func(t *testing.T) {
+		result := registry.IsCumulativeProfile("mutex:contentions:count:contentions:count")
+		require.True(t, result)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("Edge case: memory alloc objects count is cumulative", func(t *testing.T) {
+		result := registry.IsCumulativeProfile("memory:alloc_objects:count:space:bytes")
+		require.True(t, result)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("Unknown profile falls back to unit-based logic", func(t *testing.T) {
+		result := registry.IsCumulativeProfile("unknown:profile:nanoseconds:test:test")
+		require.True(t, result) // ns should be treated as cumulative by fallback
+
+		result = registry.IsCumulativeProfile("unknown:profile:count:test:test")
+		require.False(t, result) // count/short should be treated as instant by fallback
+	})
+}
diff --git a/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/query.go b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/query.go
index c2243c7af05..506f9de33ee 100644
--- a/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/query.go
+++ b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/query.go
@@ -76,7 +76,6 @@ func (d *PyroscopeDatasource) query(ctx context.Context, pCtx backend.PluginCont
 					logger.Error("Failed to parse the MinStep using default", "MinStep", dsJson.MinStep, "function", logEntrypoint())
 				}
 			}
-			logger.Debug("Sending SelectSeriesRequest", "queryModel", qm, "function", logEntrypoint())
 			seriesResp, err := d.client.GetSeries(
 				gCtx,
 				profileTypeId,
@@ -96,7 +95,8 @@ func (d *PyroscopeDatasource) query(ctx context.Context, pCtx backend.PluginCont
 			// add the frames to the response.
 			responseMutex.Lock()
 			withAnnotations := qm.Annotations != nil && *qm.Annotations
-			frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(seriesResp, withAnnotations)
+			stepDuration := math.Max(query.Interval.Seconds(), parsedInterval.Seconds())
+			frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(seriesResp, withAnnotations, stepDuration, profileTypeId)
 			if err != nil {
 				span.RecordError(err)
 				span.SetStatus(codes.Error, err.Error())
@@ -136,7 +136,24 @@ func (d *PyroscopeDatasource) query(ctx context.Context, pCtx backend.PluginCont
 
 			var frame *data.Frame
 			if profileResp != nil {
-				frame = responseToDataFrames(profileResp)
+				var dsJson dsJsonModel
+				err := json.Unmarshal(pCtx.DataSourceInstanceSettings.JSONData, &dsJson)
+				if err != nil {
+					span.RecordError(err)
+					span.SetStatus(codes.Error, err.Error())
+					return fmt.Errorf("error unmarshaling datasource json model: %v", err)
+				}
+
+				parsedInterval := time.Second * 15
+				if dsJson.MinStep != "" {
+					parsedInterval, err = gtime.ParseDuration(dsJson.MinStep)
+					if err != nil {
+						parsedInterval = time.Second * 15
+						logger.Error("Failed to parse the MinStep using default", "MinStep", dsJson.MinStep, "function", logEntrypoint())
+					}
+				}
+				stepDuration := math.Max(query.Interval.Seconds(), parsedInterval.Seconds())
+				frame = responseToDataFrames(profileResp, stepDuration, profileTypeId)
 
 				// If query called with streaming on then return a channel
 				// to subscribe on a client-side and consume updates from a plugin.
@@ -173,9 +190,9 @@ func (d *PyroscopeDatasource) query(ctx context.Context, pCtx backend.PluginCont
 // responseToDataFrames turns Pyroscope response to data.Frame. We encode the data into a nested set format where we have
 // [level, value, label] columns and by ordering the items in a depth first traversal order we can recreate the whole
 // tree back.
-func responseToDataFrames(resp *ProfileResponse) *data.Frame {
+func responseToDataFrames(resp *ProfileResponse, stepDurationSec float64, profileTypeID string) *data.Frame {
 	tree := levelsToTree(resp.Flamebearer.Levels, resp.Flamebearer.Names)
-	return treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree, resp.Units)
+	return treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree, resp.Units, stepDurationSec, profileTypeID)
 }
 
 // START_OFFSET is offset of the bar relative to previous sibling
@@ -337,9 +354,17 @@ type CustomMeta struct {
 // where ordering the items in depth first order and knowing the level/depth of each item we can recreate the
 // parent - child relationship without explicitly needing parent/child column, and we can later just iterate over the
 // dataFrame to again basically walking depth first over the tree/profile.
-func treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree *ProfileTree, unit string) *data.Frame {
+func treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree *ProfileTree, unit string, stepDurationSec float64, profileTypeID string) *data.Frame {
 	frame := data.NewFrame("response")
-	frame.Meta = &data.FrameMeta{PreferredVisualization: "flamegraph"}
+	frameMeta := &data.FrameMeta{PreferredVisualization: "flamegraph"}
+
+	// Add metadata when rate calculation is applied
+	if isCumulativeProfile(profileTypeID) && stepDurationSec > 0 {
+		frameMeta.Custom = map[string]interface{}{
+			"rateCalculated": true,
+		}
+	}
+	frame.Meta = frameMeta
 
 	levelField := data.NewField("level", nil, []int64{})
 	valueField := data.NewField("value", nil, []int64{})
@@ -356,8 +381,17 @@ func treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree *ProfileTree, unit string) *data.Frame {
 	if tree != nil {
 		walkTree(tree, func(tree *ProfileTree) {
 			levelField.Append(int64(tree.Level))
-			valueField.Append(tree.Value)
-			selfField.Append(tree.Self)
+
+			// Apply rate calculation for cumulative profiles
+			value := tree.Value
+			self := tree.Self
+			if isCumulativeProfile(profileTypeID) && stepDurationSec > 0 {
+				value = int64(float64(value) / stepDurationSec)
+				self = int64(float64(self) / stepDurationSec)
+			}
+
+			valueField.Append(value)
+			selfField.Append(self)
 			labelField.Append(tree.Name)
 		})
 	}
@@ -433,14 +467,53 @@ func (ta *TimedAnnotation) getValue() string {
 	return ta.Annotation.Value
 }
 
-func seriesToDataFrames(resp *SeriesResponse, withAnnotations bool) ([]*data.Frame, error) {
+// isCumulativeProfile determines if a profile type requires rate calculation using the metadata registry
+func isCumulativeProfile(profileTypeID string) bool {
+	registry := GetProfileMetadataRegistry()
+	return registry.IsCumulativeProfile(profileTypeID)
+}
+
+// isCPUTimeProfile determines if a profile type represents CPU time in nanoseconds
+func isCPUTimeProfile(profileTypeID string) bool {
+	registry := GetProfileMetadataRegistry()
+	metadata := registry.GetProfileMetadata(profileTypeID)
+	if metadata != nil {
+		// Check if it's CPU time (unit is nanoseconds and type contains cpu)
+		return metadata.Unit == "ns" && (metadata.Type == "cpu" || metadata.Group == "process_cpu")
+	}
+	return false
+}
+
+// convertToRateUnit converts profile units to appropriate rate units when rate calculation is applied
+func convertToRateUnit(originalUnit string) string {
+	switch originalUnit {
+	case "bytes":
+		return "binBps"
+	case "short":
+		return "ops"
+	case "ns":
+		return "ns"
+	default:
+		return originalUnit
+	}
+}
+
+func seriesToDataFrames(resp *SeriesResponse, withAnnotations bool, stepDurationSec float64, profileTypeID string) ([]*data.Frame, error) {
 	frames := make([]*data.Frame, 0, len(resp.Series))
 	annotations := make([]*TimedAnnotation, 0)
 
 	for _, series := range resp.Series {
 		// We create separate data frames as the series may not have the same length
 		frame := data.NewFrame("series")
-		frame.Meta = &data.FrameMeta{PreferredVisualization: "graph"}
+		frameMeta := &data.FrameMeta{PreferredVisualization: "graph"}
+
+		// Add metadata when rate calculation is applied
+		if isCumulativeProfile(profileTypeID) && stepDurationSec > 0 {
+			frameMeta.Custom = map[string]interface{}{
+				"rateCalculated": true,
+			}
+		}
+		frame.Meta = frameMeta
 
 		fields := make(data.Fields, 0, 2)
 		timeField := data.NewField("time", nil, []time.Time{})
@@ -451,13 +524,35 @@ func seriesToDataFrames(resp *SeriesResponse, withAnnotations bool) ([]*data.Fra
 			labels[label.Name] = label.Value
 		}
 
+		// Determine display unit - convert units for rate-calculated cumulative profiles
+		displayUnit := resp.Units
+		if isCumulativeProfile(profileTypeID) && stepDurationSec > 0 {
+			if isCPUTimeProfile(profileTypeID) {
+				displayUnit = "cores"
+			} else {
+				// Convert other cumulative profile units to rate units
+				displayUnit = convertToRateUnit(resp.Units)
+			}
+		}
+
 		valueField := data.NewField(resp.Label, labels, []float64{})
-		valueField.Config = &data.FieldConfig{Unit: resp.Units}
+		valueField.Config = &data.FieldConfig{Unit: displayUnit}
 		fields = append(fields, valueField)
 
 		for _, point := range series.Points {
 			timeField.Append(time.UnixMilli(point.Timestamp))
-			valueField.Append(point.Value)
+
+			// Apply rate calculation for cumulative profiles
+			value := point.Value
+			if isCumulativeProfile(profileTypeID) && stepDurationSec > 0 {
+				value = value / stepDurationSec
+
+				// Convert CPU nanoseconds to cores
+				if isCPUTimeProfile(profileTypeID) {
+					value = value / 1e9
+				}
+			}
+			valueField.Append(value)
 			if withAnnotations {
 				for _, a := range point.Annotations {
 					annotations = append(annotations, &TimedAnnotation{
diff --git a/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/query_test.go b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/query_test.go
index def783b917f..67addaaedd4 100644
--- a/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/query_test.go
+++ b/pkg/tsdb/grafana-pyroscope-datasource/query_test.go
@@ -5,10 +5,11 @@ import (
 	"testing"
 	"time"
 
+	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
+
 	"github.com/grafana/grafana-plugin-sdk-go/backend"
 	"github.com/grafana/grafana-plugin-sdk-go/data"
 	typesv1 "github.com/grafana/pyroscope/api/gen/proto/go/types/v1"
-	"github.com/stretchr/testify/require"
 )
 
 // This is where the tests for the datasource backend live.
@@ -130,7 +131,7 @@ func Test_profileToDataFrame(t *testing.T) {
 		},
 		Units: "short",
 	}
-	frame := responseToDataFrames(profile)
+	frame := responseToDataFrames(profile, 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 	require.Equal(t, 4, len(frame.Fields))
 	require.Equal(t, data.NewField("level", nil, []int64{0, 1, 1}), frame.Fields[0])
 	require.Equal(t, data.NewField("value", nil, []int64{20, 10, 5}).SetConfig(&data.FieldConfig{Unit: "short"}), frame.Fields[1])
@@ -202,7 +203,7 @@ func Test_treeToNestedDataFrame(t *testing.T) {
 			},
 		}
 
-		frame := treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree, "short")
+		frame := treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree, "short", 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 
 		labelConfig := &data.FieldConfig{
 			TypeConfig: &data.FieldTypeConfig{
@@ -221,10 +222,52 @@ func Test_treeToNestedDataFrame(t *testing.T) {
 	})
 
 	t.Run("nil profile tree", func(t *testing.T) {
-		frame := treeToNestedSetDataFrame(nil, "short")
+		frame := treeToNestedSetDataFrame(nil, "short", 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 		require.Equal(t, 4, len(frame.Fields))
 		require.Equal(t, 0, frame.Fields[0].Len())
 	})
+
+	t.Run("rateCalculated metadata for cumulative profile", func(t *testing.T) {
+		tree := &ProfileTree{
+			Value: 100, Level: 0, Self: 1, Name: "root",
+		}
+		frame := treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree, "short", 15.0, "process_cpu:cpu:nanoseconds:cpu:nanoseconds")
+		require.NotNil(t, frame.Meta)
+		require.NotNil(t, frame.Meta.Custom)
+		custom := frame.Meta.Custom.(map[string]interface{})
+		require.Equal(t, true, custom["rateCalculated"])
+	})
+
+	t.Run("no rateCalculated metadata for instant profile", func(t *testing.T) {
+		tree := &ProfileTree{
+			Value: 100, Level: 0, Self: 1, Name: "root",
+		}
+		frame := treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree, "short", 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
+		require.NotNil(t, frame.Meta)
+		require.Nil(t, frame.Meta.Custom)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("CPU time keeps original units for tree data", func(t *testing.T) {
+		tree := &ProfileTree{
+			Value: 3000000000, Level: 0, Self: 1500000000, Name: "root", // 3s total, 1.5s self in nanoseconds
+		}
+		// Test CPU profile (should keep nanoseconds for flamegraph, no unit conversion)
+		frame := treeToNestedSetDataFrame(tree, "ns", 15.0, "process_cpu:cpu:nanoseconds:cpu:nanoseconds")
+
+		// Check unit remains as nanoseconds (no conversion for flamegraphs)
+		require.Equal(t, "ns", frame.Fields[1].Config.Unit)
+		require.Equal(t, "ns", frame.Fields[2].Config.Unit)
+
+		// Check values were rate calculated but not unit converted: 3000000000/15 = 200000000, 1500000000/15 = 100000000
+		require.Equal(t, int64(200000000), frame.Fields[1].At(0))
+		require.Equal(t, int64(100000000), frame.Fields[2].At(0))
+
+		// Check metadata shows rate was calculated
+		require.NotNil(t, frame.Meta)
+		require.NotNil(t, frame.Meta.Custom)
+		custom := frame.Meta.Custom.(map[string]interface{})
+		require.Equal(t, true, custom["rateCalculated"])
+	})
 }
 
 func Test_seriesToDataFrameAnnotations(t *testing.T) {
@@ -253,7 +296,7 @@ func Test_seriesToDataFrameAnnotations(t *testing.T) {
 			Label: "samples",
 		}
 
-		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, true)
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, true, 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 		require.NoError(t, err)
 		require.Equal(t, 1, len(frames))
 		require.Equal(t, 2, len(frames[0].Fields))
@@ -278,7 +321,7 @@ func Test_seriesToDataFrameAnnotations(t *testing.T) {
 			},
 		}
 
-		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, false)
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, false, 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 		require.NoError(t, err)
 		require.Equal(t, 1, len(frames))
 	})
@@ -302,7 +345,7 @@ func Test_seriesToDataFrameAnnotations(t *testing.T) {
 			},
 		}
 
-		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, true)
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, true, 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 		require.NoError(t, err)
 		require.Equal(t, 2, len(frames))
 
@@ -348,7 +391,7 @@ func Test_seriesToDataFrameAnnotations(t *testing.T) {
 			},
 		}
 
-		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, true)
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, true, 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 		require.NoError(t, err)
 		require.Equal(t, 2, len(frames))
 
@@ -375,7 +418,7 @@ func Test_seriesToDataFrame(t *testing.T) {
 			Units: "short",
 			Label: "samples",
 		}
-		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, true)
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, true, 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 		require.NoError(t, err)
 		require.Equal(t, 2, len(frames[0].Fields))
 		require.Equal(t, data.NewField("time", nil, []time.Time{time.UnixMilli(1000), time.UnixMilli(2000)}), frames[0].Fields[0])
@@ -390,7 +433,7 @@ func Test_seriesToDataFrame(t *testing.T) {
 			Label: "samples",
 		}
 
-		frames, err = seriesToDataFrames(series, true)
+		frames, err = seriesToDataFrames(series, true, 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 		require.NoError(t, err)
 		require.Equal(t, data.NewField("samples", map[string]string{"app": "bar"}, []float64{30, 10}).SetConfig(&data.FieldConfig{Unit: "short"}), frames[0].Fields[1])
 	})
@@ -404,7 +447,7 @@ func Test_seriesToDataFrame(t *testing.T) {
 			Units: "short",
 			Label: "samples",
 		}
-		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(resp, true)
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(resp, true, 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
 		require.NoError(t, err)
 		require.Equal(t, 2, len(frames))
 		require.Equal(t, 2, len(frames[0].Fields))
@@ -412,6 +455,99 @@ func Test_seriesToDataFrame(t *testing.T) {
 		require.Equal(t, data.NewField("samples", map[string]string{"foo": "bar"}, []float64{30, 10}).SetConfig(&data.FieldConfig{Unit: "short"}), frames[0].Fields[1])
 		require.Equal(t, data.NewField("samples", map[string]string{"foo": "baz"}, []float64{30, 10}).SetConfig(&data.FieldConfig{Unit: "short"}), frames[1].Fields[1])
 	})
+
+	t.Run("rateCalculated metadata for cumulative profile", func(t *testing.T) {
+		series := &SeriesResponse{
+			Series: []*Series{
+				{Labels: []*LabelPair{}, Points: []*Point{{Timestamp: int64(1000), Value: 30}, {Timestamp: int64(2000), Value: 10}}},
+			},
+			Units: "ns",
+			Label: "cpu",
+		}
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, false, 15.0, "process_cpu:cpu:nanoseconds:cpu:nanoseconds")
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		require.Equal(t, 1, len(frames))
+		require.NotNil(t, frames[0].Meta)
+		require.NotNil(t, frames[0].Meta.Custom)
+		custom := frames[0].Meta.Custom.(map[string]interface{})
+		require.Equal(t, true, custom["rateCalculated"])
+	})
+
+	t.Run("no rateCalculated metadata for instant profile", func(t *testing.T) {
+		series := &SeriesResponse{
+			Series: []*Series{
+				{Labels: []*LabelPair{}, Points: []*Point{{Timestamp: int64(1000), Value: 30}, {Timestamp: int64(2000), Value: 10}}},
+			},
+			Units: "short",
+			Label: "goroutines",
+		}
+		// Test instant profile (should not have rateCalculated metadata)
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, false, 15.0, "goroutine:goroutine:count:goroutine:count")
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		require.Equal(t, 1, len(frames))
+		require.NotNil(t, frames[0].Meta)
+		require.Nil(t, frames[0].Meta.Custom)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("CPU time conversion to cores", func(t *testing.T) {
+		series := &SeriesResponse{
+			Series: []*Series{
+				{Labels: []*LabelPair{}, Points: []*Point{{Timestamp: int64(1000), Value: 3000000000}, {Timestamp: int64(2000), Value: 1500000000}}}, // 3s and 1.5s in nanoseconds
+			},
+			Units: "ns",
+			Label: "cpu",
+		}
+		// should convert nanoseconds to cores and set unit to "cores"
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, false, 15.0, "process_cpu:cpu:nanoseconds:cpu:nanoseconds")
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		require.Equal(t, 1, len(frames))
+
+		require.Equal(t, "cores", frames[0].Fields[1].Config.Unit)
+
+		// Check values were converted: 3000000000/15/1e9 = 0.2 cores/sec, 1500000000/15/1e9 = 0.1 cores/sec
+		values := fieldValues[float64](frames[0].Fields[1])
+		require.Equal(t, []float64{0.2, 0.1}, values)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("Memory allocation unit conversion to bytes/sec", func(t *testing.T) {
+		series := &SeriesResponse{
+			Series: []*Series{
+				{Labels: []*LabelPair{}, Points: []*Point{{Timestamp: int64(1000), Value: 150000000}, {Timestamp: int64(2000), Value: 300000000}}}, // 150 MB, 300 MB
+			},
+			Units: "bytes",
+			Label: "memory_alloc",
+		}
+		// should convert bytes to binBps and apply rate calculation
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, false, 15.0, "memory:alloc_space:bytes:space:bytes")
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		require.Equal(t, 1, len(frames))
+
+		require.Equal(t, "binBps", frames[0].Fields[1].Config.Unit)
+
+		// Check values were rate calculated: 150000000/15 = 10000000, 300000000/15 = 20000000
+		values := fieldValues[float64](frames[0].Fields[1])
+		require.Equal(t, []float64{10000000, 20000000}, values)
+	})
+
+	t.Run("Count-based profile unit conversion to ops/sec", func(t *testing.T) {
+		series := &SeriesResponse{
+			Series: []*Series{
+				{Labels: []*LabelPair{}, Points: []*Point{{Timestamp: int64(1000), Value: 1500}, {Timestamp: int64(2000), Value: 3000}}}, // 1500, 3000 contentions
+			},
+			Units: "short",
+			Label: "contentions",
+		}
+		// should convert short to ops and apply rate calculation
+		frames, err := seriesToDataFrames(series, false, 15.0, "mutex:contentions:count:contentions:count")
+		require.NoError(t, err)
+		require.Equal(t, 1, len(frames))
+
+		require.Equal(t, "ops", frames[0].Fields[1].Config.Unit)
+
+		// Check values were rate calculated: 1500/15 = 100, 3000/15 = 200
+		values := fieldValues[float64](frames[0].Fields[1])
+		require.Equal(t, []float64{100, 200}, values)
+	})
 }
 
 type FakeClient struct {