In a giant magnetoresistive head, a magnetic read width is reduced and a read output is increased. The giant magnetoresistive head has a magnetoresistive film having a pinned layer, a non-magnetic layer, and a free layer, a pair of terminals for applying a current to the magnetoresistive film, and bias applying means for applying a bias magnetic field for magnetic domain control to the free layer. The free layer has a sensing region and a pair of out-of-sensing-region regions on both ends of the sensing region. The magnetization direction of one of the out-of-sensing-region regions and the magnetization direction of the other out-of-sensing-region region have different components in a direction of element height of head. The magnetization of the one out-of-sensing-region region and the magnetization of the other out-of-sensing-region region are nearly symmetrical relative to the sensing region interposed therebetween.