Condensed Financial Information for Eagle Bulk Shipping Inc. (Parent Company Only) - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Millions			12 Months Ended
	Jan. 20, 2017	Dec. 13, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Condensed Financial Statements, Captions [Line Items]
Cash dividends received from subsidiaries			$ 0	$ 0	$ 0
Common stock, par value (in dollars per share)			$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Proceeds from common stock placement, net of issuance costs			$ 96,030,003	$ 85,700,535	0
December Private Placement
Condensed Financial Statements, Captions [Line Items]
Shares issued for private placement (in shares)		22.2
Common stock, par value (in dollars per share)		$ 0.01
Initial price per share of common stock issued (in dollars per share)		$ 4.50
Gross proceeds from issuance of common stock		$ 100,000,000
Proceeds from common stock placement, net of issuance costs	$ 96,000,000
Parent Company
Condensed Financial Statements, Captions [Line Items]
Common stock, par value (in dollars per share)			$ 0.01	$ 0.01
Proceeds from common stock placement, net of issuance costs			$ 96,030,003	$ 85,700,535	$ 0
Investment in subsidiaries			$ 8,700,000	$ 2,000,000