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Label

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Value

Risk/Return:

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Risk/Return [Heading]

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TIAA-CREF Large-Cap Value Fund

Objective [Heading]

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Investment objective

Objective, Primary [Text Block]

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The Fund seeks a favorable long-term total return, mainly through capital appreciation, primarily from equity securities of large domestic companies.

Expense [Heading]

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Fees and expenses

Expense Narrative [Text Block]

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This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Fund:

Shareholder Fees Caption [Text]

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SHAREHOLDER FEES (fees paid directly from your investment)

Operating Expenses Caption [Text]

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ANNUAL FUND OPERATING EXPENSES (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Fee Waiver or Reimbursement over Assets, Date of Termination

rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssetsDateOfTermination

2016-02-29

Portfolio Turnover [Heading]

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Portfolio turnover

Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]

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The Fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when Fund shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the Fund’s performance. During the fiscal year ended October 31, 2014, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 49% of the average value of its portfolio.

Portfolio Turnover, Rate

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Expenses Restated to Reflect Current [Text]

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Expense information has been restated to reflect an amendment to the Fund’s investment management agreement effective March 1, 2015.

Expense Example [Heading]

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Example

Expense Example Narrative [Text Block]

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This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in shares of the Fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the Fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all your shares at the end of those periods. The example also assumes that your investment has a 5% return each year and that the Fund’s operating expenses, before expense reimbursements, remain the same. The example assumes that the Fund’s expense reimbursement agreement will remain in place through February 29, 2016, but that there will be no waiver or expense reimbursement agreement in effect thereafter. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Strategy [Heading]

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Principal investment strategies

Strategy Narrative [Text Block]

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Under normal circumstances, the Fund invests at least 80% of its assets in large-cap equity securities. The Fund invests primarily in equity securities of large domestic companies, as defined by the Fund’s benchmark index (the Russell 1000^® Value Index), that the Fund’s investment adviser, Teachers Advisors, Inc. (“Advisors”), believes appear undervalued by the market based on an evaluation of their potential worth. For purposes of the Fund’s 80% investment policy, “large-cap” securities are securities of issuers with a capitalization equal to or greater than the top 80% of issuers by capitalization within the Russell 1000^®Index at the time of purchase. For purposes of the 80% investment policy, the term “assets” means net assets, plus the amount of any borrowings for investment purposes.

Advisors uses a variety of comparative valuation criteria to determine whether shares of a particular company might be undervalued, including analyses of historical valuations of the same security; valuations of comparable securities in the same sector or the overall market; various financial ratios such as stock price-to-book value, stock price-to-earnings, and dividend yield; and free cash flow generated by the company. Advisors generally focuses on companies with normalized earnings and high operating leverage, which may cause the Fund to be more volatile in down markets than other large-cap value funds that have more defensive-oriented investment strategies.

The Fund may invest up to 20% of its assets in foreign investments.

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Principal investment risks

Risk Narrative [Text Block]

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You could lose money over short or long periods by investing in this Fund. An investment in the Fund, due to the nature of the Fund’s portfolio holdings, typically is subject to the following principal investment risks:

· Market Risk—The risk that market prices of portfolio investments held by the Fund may fall rapidly or unpredictably due to a variety of factors, including changing economic, political or market conditions. Market risk may affect a single issuer, industry or sector of the economy, or it may affect the market as a whole.

· Issuer Risk (often called Financial Risk)—The risk that an issuer’s earnings prospects and overall financial position will deteriorate, causing a decline in the value of the issuer’s financial instruments over short or extended periods of time.

· Large-Cap Risk—The risk that large-capitalization companies are more mature and may grow more slowly than the economy as a whole and tend to go in and out of favor based on market and economic conditions.

· Mid-Cap Risk—The risk that the stocks of mid-capitalization companies often experience greater price volatility, lower trading volume and less liquidity than the stocks of larger, more established companies.

· Style Risk—The risk that use of a particular investing style (such as growth or value investing) may fall out of favor in the marketplace for various periods of time and result in underperformance relative to the broader market sector or significant declines in the value of the Fund’s portfolio investments.

· Risks of Value Investing—Securities believed to be undervalued are subject to the risks that the issuer’s potential business prospects are not realized, its potential value is never recognized by the market or the securities were appropriately priced when acquired. As a result, value stocks can be overpriced when acquired and may not perform as anticipated.

· Active Management Risk—The risk that Advisors’ strategy, investment selection or trading execution may cause the Fund to underperform relative to the benchmark index or mutual funds with similar investment objectives.

· Foreign Investment Risk—Foreign markets can be more volatile than the U.S. market due to increased risks of adverse issuer, political, regulatory, currency, market or economic developments and can result in greater price volatility and perform differently from financial instruments of U.S. issuers. This risk may be heightened in emerging or developing markets. Foreign investments may also be less liquid and more difficult to value than investments in U.S. issuers.

Risk Closing [Text Block]

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Please see the non-summary portion of the Prospectus for more detailed information about the risks described above.

Risk Lose Money [Text]

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You could lose money over short or long periods by investing in this Fund.

Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]

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Past performance

Performance Narrative [Text Block]

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The following chart and table help illustrate some of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year to year. The bar chart shows the annual total returns of the Institutional Class of the Fund, before taxes, in each full calendar year for the last ten years. Because the expenses vary across share classes, the performance of the Institutional Class may vary from the other share classes. Below the bar chart are the best and worst returns of the Institutional Class for a calendar quarter during the period covered by the bar chart. The performance table following the bar chart shows the Fund’s average annual total returns for the Institutional Class, Retirement Class, Premier Class and Retail Class over the one-year, five-year, ten-year and since-inception periods (where applicable) ended December 31, 2014, and how those returns compare to those of the Fund’s benchmark index. After-tax performance is shown only for Institutional Class shares, and after-tax returns for the other classes of shares will vary from the after-tax returns presented for Institutional Class shares.

The returns shown below reflect previous agreements by Advisors to waive or reimburse the Fund for certain fees and expenses. Without these waivers and reimbursements, the returns of the Fund would have been lower. Past performance of the Fund (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how it will perform in the future. The benchmark index listed below is unmanaged, and you cannot invest directly in the benchmark index. The returns for the benchmark index reflect no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes.

For current performance information of each share class, including performance to the most recent month-end, please visit www.tiaa-cref.org.

Performance Information Illustrates Variability of Returns [Text]

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The following chart and table help illustrate some of the risks of investing in the Fund by showing changes in the Fund’s performance from year to year.

Performance Availability Website Address [Text]

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www.tiaa-cref.org

Performance Past Does Not Indicate Future [Text]

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Past performance of the Fund (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how it will perform in the future.

Bar Chart [Heading]

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ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS FOR THE INSTITUTIONAL CLASS SHARES (%)

Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]

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Best quarter: 22.75%, for the quarter ended June 30, 2009. Worst quarter: -22.69%, for the quarter ended December 31, 2008.

Highest Quarterly Return, Label

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Best quarter:

Highest Quarterly Return, Date

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Jun. 30, 2009

Highest Quarterly Return

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Lowest Quarterly Return, Label

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Worst quarter:

Lowest Quarterly Return, Date

rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate

Dec. 31, 2008

Lowest Quarterly Return

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Performance Table Heading

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AVERAGE ANNUAL TOTAL RETURNS For the Periods Ended December 31, 2014

Index No Deduction for Fees, Expenses, Taxes [Text]

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The returns for the benchmark index reflect no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes.

Performance Table Uses Highest Federal Rate

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After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates in effect during the periods shown and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes.

Performance Table Not Relevant to Tax Deferred

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The after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(a), 401(k) or 403(b) plans or Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs).

Performance Table One Class of after Tax Shown [Text]

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After-tax performance is shown only for Institutional Class shares, and after-tax returns for the other classes of shares will vary from the after-tax returns presented for Institutional Class shares.

Performance Table Closing [Text Block]

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Current performance of the Fund’s shares may be higher or lower than that shown above.

After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates in effect during the periods shown and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes. Actual after-tax returns depend on the investor’s tax situation and may differ from those shown. The after-tax returns shown are not relevant to investors who hold their Fund shares through tax-deferred arrangements such as 401(a), 401(k) or 403(b) plans or Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). After-tax returns are shown for only one class, and after-tax returns for other classes will vary.

Russell 1000® Value Index (reflects no deductions for fees, expenses or taxes)

Risk/Return:

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rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

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Retail Class

Risk/Return:

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Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Purchases (percentage of offering price)

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none

Maximum Deferred Sales Charge

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none

Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Reinvested Dividends and Other Distributions

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none

Redemption or Exchange Fee

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none

Account Maintenance Fee (annual fee on accounts under $2,000)

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Management Fees

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^[1]

Distribution (Rule 12b-1) Fees

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^[1]

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

rr_ExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Waivers and Expense Reimbursements

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^[1],[2]

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement

rr_NetExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years

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rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

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Oct. 01, 2002

Retirement Class

Risk/Return:

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Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Purchases (percentage of offering price)

rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice

none

Maximum Deferred Sales Charge

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none

Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Reinvested Dividends and Other Distributions

rr_MaximumSalesChargeOnReinvestedDividendsAndDistributionsOverOther

none

Redemption or Exchange Fee

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none

Account Maintenance Fee (annual fee on accounts under $2,000)

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none

Management Fees

rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets

^[1]

Distribution (Rule 12b-1) Fees

rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets

^[1]

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

rr_ExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Waivers and Expense Reimbursements

rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets

^[1],[2]

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement

rr_NetExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years

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rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate

Oct. 01, 2002

Premier Class

Risk/Return:

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Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Purchases (percentage of offering price)

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none

Maximum Deferred Sales Charge

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none

Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Reinvested Dividends and Other Distributions

rr_MaximumSalesChargeOnReinvestedDividendsAndDistributionsOverOther

none

Redemption or Exchange Fee

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none

Account Maintenance Fee (annual fee on accounts under $2,000)

rr_ShareholderFeeOther

none

Management Fees

rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets

^[1]

Distribution (Rule 12b-1) Fees

rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets

^[1]

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

rr_ExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Waivers and Expense Reimbursements

rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets

^[1],[2]

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement

rr_NetExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years

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rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

^[3]

rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate

Sep. 30, 2009

Institutional Class

Risk/Return:

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Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Purchases (percentage of offering price)

rr_MaximumSalesChargeImposedOnPurchasesOverOfferingPrice

none

Maximum Deferred Sales Charge

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none

Maximum Sales Charge Imposed on Reinvested Dividends and Other Distributions

rr_MaximumSalesChargeOnReinvestedDividendsAndDistributionsOverOther

none

Redemption or Exchange Fee

rr_RedemptionFeeOverRedemption

none

Account Maintenance Fee (annual fee on accounts under $2,000)

rr_ShareholderFeeOther

none

Management Fees

rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets

^[1]

Distribution (Rule 12b-1) Fees

rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets

^[1]

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses

rr_ExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Waivers and Expense Reimbursements

rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets

^[1],[2]

Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver and/or Expense Reimbursement

rr_NetExpensesOverAssets

^[1]

Expense Example, with Redemption, 1 Year

rr_ExpenseExampleYear01

Expense Example, with Redemption, 3 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 5 Years

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Expense Example, with Redemption, 10 Years

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Annual Return 2005

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Annual Return 2006

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Annual Return 2007

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Annual Return 2008

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Annual Return 2009

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Annual Return 2010

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Annual Return 2011

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Annual Return 2012

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Annual Return 2013

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Annual Return 2014

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rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate

Oct. 01, 2002

Institutional Class | After Taxes on Distributions

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

Institutional Class | After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

[1]	Expense information has been restated to reflect an amendment to the Fund's investment management agreement effective March 1, 2015.
[2]	Under the Fund's expense reimbursement arrangements, the Fund's investment adviser, Teachers Advisors, Inc., has contractually agreed to reimburse the Fund for any Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses (excluding interest, taxes, brokerage commissions or other transactional expenses, Acquired Fund Fees and Expenses and extraordinary expenses) that exceed: (i) 0.91% of average daily net assets for Retail Class shares; (ii) 0.77% of average daily net assets for Retirement Class shares; (iii) 0.67% of average daily net assets for Premier Class shares; and (iv) 0.52% of average daily net assets for Institutional Class shares of the Fund. These expense reimbursement arrangements will continue through at least February 29, 2016, unless changed with approval of the Board of Trustees.
[3]	The performance shown for the Premier Class that is prior to its inception date is based on performance of the Fund's Institutional Class. The performance for these periods has not been restated to reflect higher expenses of the Premier Class. If those expenses had been reflected, the performance would have been lower.