Disclosed are a perpendicular magnetic recording medium with lower medium noise, insusceptible to thermal fluctuation and high recording resolution and a method of manufacturing it. As the step of forming a metal layer at the time of forming a recording layer on a non-magnetic substrate via a plurality of underlayers and the step of forming an oxide layer with an average thickness of 0.2 nm or less are repeated, the crystal grains are magnetically isolated without disturbing the orientation of the crystal grain of the recording layer of the perpendicular magnetic recording medium or without degrading the magnetic characteristic of the crystal grain of the recording layer.