An apparatus comprising a slider is configured for heat-assisted magnetic recording. The slider comprises a media-facing surface. One or more reader elements are positioned in a reader region of the slider, and the one or more reader elements have an average first elevation at the media-facing surface. One or more writer elements are positioned in a writer region of the slider, and the one or more writer elements have an average second elevation at the media-facing surface. The average second elevation is less than the average first elevation.