Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Earnings per share (Details)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Feb. 28, 2014	Feb. 28, 2013	Feb. 28, 2014	Feb. 28, 2013
Earnings per share attributable to Global Payments:
Basic weighted average shares outstanding	71,835,000	77,756,000	72,598,000	78,364,000
Plus: dilutive effect of stock options and other share-based awards	599,000	568,000	554,000	383,000
Diluted weighted average shares outstanding	72,434,000	78,324,000	73,152,000	78,747,000
Employee Stock Option [Member]
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Antidilutive securities excluded from computation of diluted share base	0	100,000	0	400,000