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Description of Business	9 Months Ended
Description of Business	Sep. 30, 2013
Description of Business [Abstract]
Description of Business	Description of Business Codexis, Inc. (the "Company") was incorporated in the state of Delaware in January 2002. The Company engineers enzymes for the pharmaceutical and complex chemistry industries. Its proven technologies enable scale-up and implementation of biocatalytic solutions to meet customer needs for rapid, cost-effective and sustainable process development, from research to manufacturing. The Company has commercialized its technology and products in the pharmaceuticals market, which is its primary business focus. There are currently over 50 pharmaceutical firms using its technology, products and services in their manufacturing process development, including in the production of some of the world's bestselling and fastest growing drugs. The Company assists customers in discovering or enhancing enzymes variants by applying its CodeEvolver^® directed evolution technology platform, which introduces genetic mutations into microorganisms, giving rise to changes in the enzymes that they produce. Once the Company identifies potentially beneficial mutations, it tests combinations of these mutations until it has created variant enzymes that exhibit marketable performance characteristics superior to competitive products. This process allows the Company to make continuous, efficient improvements to the performance of its enzymes. In these Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements, the “Company” refers to Codexis, Inc. and its subsidiaries on a consolidated basis.