Stockholders' Equity - Earnings per share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2019
Components of basic and diluted earnings per share
Net income attributable to Waddell & Reed Financial, Inc.	$ 24,824	$ 33,948	$ 46,810	$ 66,002
Weighted average shares outstanding - basic and diluted	65,488,000	74,694,000	66,581,000	75,492,000
Earnings per share:
Earnings per share, basic and diluted (in dollars per share)	$ 0.38	$ 0.45	$ 0.70	$ 0.87
Dividends
Dividends declared (in dollars per share)	$ 0.25	$ 0.25	$ 0.50	$ 0.50
Dividends payable to stockholders	$ 16,300		$ 16,300
Common stock repurchases
Shares repurchased in the open market or privately	1,468,367	2,142,894	5,275,805	4,369,219
Shares repurchased from employees to cover income tax withholdings	219,852	290,910	451,245	439,983