Disclosed herein are embodiments of a heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) head that includes a near-field transducer (NFT) with a trailing bevel. Also disclosed are sliders and data storage devices comprising those HAMR heads, and methods of manufacturing HAMR heads with NFTs having trailing bevels. A HAMR head comprises a waveguide core, a main pole, and a NFT comprising a trailing beveled edge at an acute angle to an air-bearing surface (ABS) of the HAMR head. A method of fabricating a HAMR head comprises depositing material for a NFT, creating a trailing-side surface of the NFT, and creating a trailing beveled edge in the trailing-side surface of the NFT at the ABS, and forming a dielectric layer over the trailing beveled edge. The trailing beveled edge is at an acute angle to the ABS, and a remainder of the trailing-side surface of the NFT is substantially perpendicular to the ABS.