The present invention provides a method for manufacturing a resistance change element that can reduce occurrence of corrosion without increasing a substrate temperature. A laminate film that includes a high melting-point metal film and a metal oxide film, is etched using a mask under a plasma atmosphere formed using any one of a mixture gas formed by adding at least one gas selected from the group consisting of Ar, He, Xe, Ne, Kr, O2, O3, N2, H2O, N2O, NO2, CO and CO2 to at least one kind of gasified compound selected from alcohol and hydrocarbon or the gas compound.