BORROWINGS (Domestic Credit Agreement) (Details)				3 Months Ended						3 Months Ended			3 Months Ended
	May 04, 2013 USD ($)	Feb. 02, 2013 USD ($)	Apr. 28, 2012 USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2011 Domestic Credit Agreement USD ($)	May 04, 2013 Domestic Credit Agreement USD ($)	Feb. 02, 2013 Domestic Credit Agreement USD ($)	Apr. 28, 2012 Domestic Credit Agreement USD ($)	May 04, 2013 Domestic Credit Agreement Second Lien USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2011 Domestic Credit Agreement Second Lien USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2011 Minimum Domestic Credit Agreement	Apr. 30, 2011 Minimum Domestic Credit Agreement LIBOR	Apr. 30, 2011 Minimum Domestic Credit Agreement Base Rate	Apr. 30, 2011 Maximum Domestic Credit Agreement USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2011 Maximum Domestic Credit Agreement LIBOR	Apr. 30, 2011 Maximum Domestic Credit Agreement Base Rate	Apr. 30, 2011 Letter of Credit Domestic Credit Agreement USD ($)	May 04, 2013 Sears Canada Five Year Revolving Credit Facility USD ($)	May 04, 2013 Sears Canada Five Year Revolving Credit Facility CAD	Feb. 02, 2013 Sears Canada Five Year Revolving Credit Facility USD ($)	Feb. 02, 2013 Sears Canada Five Year Revolving Credit Facility CAD	Apr. 28, 2012 Sears Canada Five Year Revolving Credit Facility USD ($)	Apr. 28, 2012 Sears Canada Five Year Revolving Credit Facility CAD	Sep. 30, 2010 Sears Canada Five Year Revolving Credit Facility USD ($)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit agreement				$ 3,275,000,000					$ 2,000,000,000							$ 1,500,000,000							$ 800,000,000
Credit agreement, additional borrowing capacity													1,000,000,000
Credit agreement, interest rates margin											2.00%	1.00%		2.50%	1.50%
Commitment fees										0.375%			0.625%
Line of Credit Facility, Amount Outstanding	1,377,000,000	749,000,000	801,000,000		1,400,000,000	749,000,000	801,000,000	1,200,000,000									0		0		0
Letters of credit outstanding amount					747,000,000	754,000,000	694,000,000
Credit Agreement available amount					$ 1,200,000,000	$ 503,000,000	$ 1,800,000,000	$ 760,000,000									$ 602,000,000	607,000,000	$ 1,800,000,000	502,000,000	$ 592,000,000	581,000,000
Limit of availability under the credit facility to make restricted payments										15.00%
Fixed charge ratio at the last day of any quarter					1.0
Credit agreement, covenant terms				The Domestic Credit Agreement limits our ability to make restricted payments, including dividends and share repurchases, if availability under the credit facility, as defined, is less than 15%. It also imposes various other requirements, which take effect if availability falls below designated thresholds, including a cash dominion requirement and a requirement that the fixed charge ratio at the last day of any quarter be not less than 1.0 to 1.0.