diff --git a/implicit/nearest_neighbours.py b/implicit/nearest_neighbours.py
index 29e50c2..c20600a 100644
--- a/implicit/nearest_neighbours.py
+++ b/implicit/nearest_neighbours.py
@@ -72,6 +72,12 @@ def recommend(
         if filter_items is not None and items is not None:
             raise ValueError("Can't specify both filter_items and items")
 
+        # Preserve the caller-requested result count: when filter_items is
+        # set we over-fetch by len(filter_items) so that the post-filter
+        # slice still has enough rows to satisfy N, but the final result
+        # must be truncated to the originally-requested N (not the
+        # inflated value).  See https://github.com/benfred/implicit/issues/736
+        requested_n = N
         if filter_items is not None:
             N += len(filter_items)
         elif items is not None:
@@ -91,7 +97,7 @@ def recommend(
 
         if filter_items is not None:
             mask = np.isin(ids, filter_items, invert=True)
-            ids, scores = ids[mask][:N], scores[mask][:N]
+            ids, scores = ids[mask][:requested_n], scores[mask][:requested_n]
 
         elif items is not None:
             mask = np.isin(ids, items)