Note 6 - Fair Values of Assets and Liabilities - Reconciliation of Level 3 Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2019	Mar. 31, 2018
Balance	$ 5,651	$ 9,240
Net revaluations of notes payable associated with structured financings, at fair value	(875)	(1,331)
Repayments on outstanding notes payable, net
Balance	$ 4,776	$ 7,909

This element represents [net] revaluations of notes payable liability measured at fair value on a recurring basis using unobservable inputs (Level 3) which have taken place during the period.

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	atlc_FairValueMeasurementWithUnobservableInputsReconciliationRecurringBasisLiabilityRevaluationsOfNotesPayable
Namespace Prefix:	atlc_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	duration

- Definition

Amount of settlements of financial instrument classified as a liability measured using unobservable inputs that reflect the entity's own assumption about the assumptions market participants would use in pricing.

+ References

Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 820
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (c)(2)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=117815213&loc=d3e19207-110258

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_FairValueMeasurementWithUnobservableInputsReconciliationRecurringBasisLiabilitySettlements
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	duration

- Definition

Fair value of financial instrument classified as a liability measured using unobservable inputs that reflect the entity's own assumption about the assumptions market participants would use in pricing.

+ References

Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 820
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (c)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=117815213&loc=d3e19207-110258

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_FairValueMeasurementWithUnobservableInputsReconciliationsRecurringBasisLiabilityValue
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	instant