Consolidated Statements of Income (Unaudited) - USD ($) shares in Millions, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended
	Jul. 27, 2018	Jul. 28, 2017
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net sales	$ 7,384	$ 7,390
Costs and expenses:
Cost of products sold	2,204	2,352
Research and development expense	585	549
Selling, general, and administrative expense	2,597	2,580
Amortization of intangible assets	446	454
Restructuring charges, net	62	8
Certain litigation charges	103	0
Other operating expense, net	151	65
Operating profit (loss)	1,236	1,382
Other non-operating income, net	(186)	(99)
Interest expense	242	286
Income before income taxes	1,180	1,195
Income tax provision	103	186
Net income	1,077	1,009
Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interests	(2)	7
Net income attributable to Medtronic	$ 1,075	$ 1,016
Basic earnings per share (usd per share)	$ 0.79	$ 0.75
Diluted earnings per share (usd per share)	$ 0.79	$ 0.74
Basic weighted average shares outstanding (shares)	1,352.7	1,361.9
Diluted weighted average shares outstanding (shares)	1,365.4	1,375.6
Cash dividends declared per ordinary share (usd per share)	$ 0.50	$ 0.46