Equity and Partners' Capital - Partnership Interests Table (Details) - Western Gas Partners, LP [Member] - shares			1 Months Ended		3 Months Ended			12 Months Ended
		Mar. 14, 2016	Apr. 30, 2016	Nov. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Balance							142,571,895	142,571,895	141,192,051
Units issued								946,261	498,009
Long-Term Incentive Plan award vestings								5,403	8,310
Balance					167,535,992			167,535,992	142,571,895
Over-Allotment Option [Member] | Private Investor [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Units issued								7,892,220
Springfield Pipeline LLC [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Acquisition								16,120,213
500 Million COP [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Common units issued									873,525
Common Units [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Balance							128,576,965	128,576,965	127,695,130
Long-Term Incentive Plan award vestings								5,403	8,310
Common units issued	[1]			8,620,153
Balance					130,671,970			130,671,970	128,576,965
Common Units [Member] | Over-Allotment Option [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Common units issued				1,120,153
Common Units [Member] | Springfield Pipeline LLC [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Units issued	[2]	2,089,602
Acquisition								2,089,602
Common Units [Member] | 500 Million COP [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Common units issued									873,525
Class C Units [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Balance							11,411,862	11,411,862	10,913,853
Units issued					178,977			946,261	498,009
Balance					12,358,123			12,358,123	11,411,862
Series A Preferred Units [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Balance							0	0	0
Balance					21,922,831			21,922,831	0
Series A Preferred Units [Member] | Private Investor [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Units issued		14,030,611					14,030,611
Series A Preferred Units [Member] | Over-Allotment Option [Member] | Private Investor [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Units issued			7,892,220			7,892,220		7,892,220
Series A Preferred Units [Member] | Springfield Pipeline LLC [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Units issued	[2]	14,030,611
Acquisition								14,030,611
General Partner [Member]
Capital Unit [Line Items]
Balance							2,583,068	2,583,068	2,583,068
Units issued	[1],[3]			153,061
Balance					2,583,068			2,583,068	2,583,068

[1] Includes the issuance of 1,120,153 WES common units pursuant to the partial exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option, the net proceeds from which were $77.0 million. Beginning with this partial exercise, WES GP elected not to make a corresponding capital contribution to maintain its 2.0% interest in WES.

[2] WES acquired Springfield Pipeline LLC (“Springfield”) from Anadarko for $750.0 million, consisting of $712.5 million in cash and the issuance of 1,253,761 of WES common units. Springfield owns a 50.1% interest in an oil gathering system and a gas gathering system, such interest being referred to in this report as the “Springfield interest.” The Springfield oil and gas gathering systems (collectively, the “Springfield system”) are located in Dimmit, La Salle, Maverick and Webb Counties in South Texas. WES financed the cash portion of the acquisition through: (i) borrowings of $247.5 million on the WES RCF, (ii) the issuance of 835,841 of WES common units to WGP and (iii) the issuance of WES Series A Preferred units to private investors. See Note 4 for further information regarding WES’s Series A Preferred units. WGP financed the purchase of the WES common units by borrowing $25.0 million under the WGP RCF. See Note 12.

[3] Represents general partner units of WES issued to WES GP in exchange for WES GP’s proportionate capital contribution.