Acquisitions - 2017 Acquisitions (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands			1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 15, 2017	Sep. 05, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Acquisitions
Cash paid for acquisitions of businesses												$ 51,664	$ 22,278	$ 128,245
Goodwill			$ 173,226	$ 173,226				$ 166,917				173,226	166,917	166,659
Liabilities:
Net income (loss)				$ (116,344)	$ (148,532)	$ (132,951)	$ (148,984)	$ (335,587)	$ (111,211)	$ (184,650)	$ (398,294)	(546,811)	(1,029,742)	$ (372,675)
Stavanger Based Robotic Drilling Systems AS
Acquisitions
Cash paid for acquisitions of businesses		$ 50,700
Recorded intangible assets		53,300
Goodwill		5,700
Other liabilities		7,300
Liabilities:
Other long-term liabilities		7,300
Stavanger Based Robotic Drilling Systems AS | Developed Technology
Acquisitions
Recorded intangible assets		$ 20,800
Estimated Useful Life		10 years
Stavanger Based Robotic Drilling Systems AS | In Process Research and Development
Acquisitions
Recorded intangible assets		$ 32,500
Tesco Corporation
Acquisitions
Fair value of common shares issued	$ 179,000
Other liabilities	2,436
Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	59,804
Accounts receivable	41,565
Inventory	44,525
Other current assets	13,889
Property, plant and equipment, net	61,650
Other long-term assets	3,647
Total assets	225,080
Liabilities:
Accounts payable	14,111
Accrued liabilities	29,542
Other long-term liabilities	2,436
Total liabilities	46,089
Net assets acquired	$ 178,991
Operating revenues			7,700									2,717,933	2,362,576
Net income (loss)			100
Business Acquisition, Pro Forma Information
Operating revenues			$ 7,700									2,717,933	2,362,576
Income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax												$ (554,235)	$ (1,129,172)
Income (loss) from continuing operations per share - basic												$ (1.75)	$ (3.59)
Income (loss) from continuing operations per share - diluted												$ (1.75)	$ (3.59)
Common Shares | Tesco Corporation
Acquisitions
Number of shares of Nabors stock exchanged per share of acquiree stock	0.68
Number of common shares to be issued	32,100,000