There is provided a perpendicular magnetic recording head device which can increase magnetic field gradient to exhibit excellent recording performance while maintaining magnetic field intensity capable of performing information recording well. In a perpendicular magnetic recording head device composed of a main magnetic pole layer and a return path layer which are laminated with a nonmagnetic insulating layer therebetween, the return path layer has a two-layer structure composed of a low saturation magnetic flux density layer (low Bs layer), and a high saturation magnetic flux density layer (high Bs layer) formed an the low Bs layer and made of a material that has a relatively high saturation magnetic flux density. In a front end surface of the return path layer, the low Bs layer and the high Bs layer are exposed.