Income per Unit (Summary of Basic and Diluted Earnings per Share) (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2020	Mar. 31, 2019
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Net income available to common unitholders	$ 202,859	$ 95,869
Weighted average units outstanding-basic (units)	222,163,324	207,809,383
Potentially dilutive common units:
Unvested incentive units (units)	224,558	323,064
Unvested restricted stock	158,022
Forward equity offering (units)	1,392,934	221,448
Market performance-based awards (units)	535,457	172,354
Weighted average shares/units outstanding-diluted (shares/units)	224,474,295	208,526,249
Income per share:
Basic (in dollars per unit)	$ 0.91	$ 0.46
Diluted (in dollars per unit)	$ 0.90	$ 0.46
Digital Realty Trust, L.P.
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Net income available to common unitholders	$ 210,659	$ 100,169
Weighted average units outstanding-basic (units)	230,442,659	217,039,295
Potentially dilutive common units:
Unvested incentive units (units)	224,558	323,064
Unvested restricted stock	158,022
Forward equity offering (units)	1,392,934	221,448
Market performance-based awards (units)	535,457	172,354
Weighted average shares/units outstanding-diluted (shares/units)	232,753,630	217,756,161
Income per share:
Basic (in dollars per unit)	$ 0.91	$ 0.46
Diluted (in dollars per unit)	$ 0.90	$ 0.46