To provide a profile measuring apparatus for measuring the intricate three-dimensional profile including a steep inclining face of an object accurately at high speed regardless of whether the object is a conductor or not, and a manufacturing method of probe group.

When an object 5 is moved in the vertical direction Z by means of an X-Y-Z table 7, the object 5 touches the forward end part 8d each of a group of probes 8 which is thereby flexed. An image processing section detect contact based on the image of the probe group 8 picked up by means of an optical microscope 10. A general control section controls the X-Y-Z table 7 to scan the surface of the object 5 in the vertical direction Z and the horizontal directions X, Y and acquires the three-dimensional coordinates at a plurality of points on the surface of the object 5 based on the contact detected at the image processing section.