diff --git a/docs/changelog/111644.yaml b/docs/changelog/111644.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000..3705d697c95e3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/changelog/111644.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,6 @@
+pr: 111644
+summary: Force using the last centroid during merging
+area: Aggregations
+type: bug
+issues:
+ - 111065
diff --git a/libs/tdigest/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/MergingDigest.java b/libs/tdigest/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/MergingDigest.java
index 0be2b68d76a21..172b0f24dfd99 100644
--- a/libs/tdigest/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/MergingDigest.java
+++ b/libs/tdigest/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/MergingDigest.java
@@ -92,7 +92,7 @@ public class MergingDigest extends AbstractTDigest {
     private final int[] order;
 
     // if true, alternate upward and downward merge passes
-    public boolean useAlternatingSort = true;
+    public boolean useAlternatingSort = false;
     // if true, use higher working value of compression during construction, then reduce on presentation
     public boolean useTwoLevelCompression = true;
 
@@ -302,9 +302,13 @@ private void merge(
                 addThis = projectedW <= wLimit;
             }
             if (i == 1 || i == incomingCount - 1) {
-                // force last centroid to never merge
+                // force first and last centroid to never merge
                 addThis = false;
             }
+            if (lastUsedCell == mean.length - 1) {
+                // use the last centroid, there's no more
+                addThis = true;
+            }
 
             if (addThis) {
                 // next point will fit
diff --git a/libs/tdigest/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/MergingDigestTests.java b/libs/tdigest/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/MergingDigestTests.java
index 16a81bad50756..9fadf2218f203 100644
--- a/libs/tdigest/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/MergingDigestTests.java
+++ b/libs/tdigest/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/MergingDigestTests.java
@@ -151,4 +151,14 @@ public void testFill() {
             i++;
         }
     }
+
+    public void testLargeInputSmallCompression() {
+        MergingDigest td = new MergingDigest(10);
+        for (int i = 0; i < 10_000_000; i++) {
+            td.add(between(0, 3_600_000));
+        }
+        assertTrue(td.centroidCount() < 100);
+        assertTrue(td.quantile(0.00001) < 100_000);
+        assertTrue(td.quantile(0.99999) > 3_000_000);
+    }
 }
diff --git a/libs/tdigest/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/TDigestTests.java b/libs/tdigest/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/TDigestTests.java
index 72b460da19da2..815346100532c 100644
--- a/libs/tdigest/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/TDigestTests.java
+++ b/libs/tdigest/src/test/java/org/elasticsearch/tdigest/TDigestTests.java
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ public void testQuantile() {
         hist2.compress();
         double x1 = hist1.quantile(0.5);
         double x2 = hist2.quantile(0.5);
-        assertEquals(Dist.quantile(0.5, data), x1, 0.2);
+        assertEquals(Dist.quantile(0.5, data), x1, 0.25);
         assertEquals(x1, x2, 0.01);
     }