Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Details) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($) item	Dec. 31, 2016 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2015 USD ($)
General And Basis Of Presentation1 [Line Items]
Number of ATMs operated by entity	230,000
Number of ATMs under service contracts	134,000
Number of ATMs under branding contracts with financial institutions	20,000
Number of financial institutions participating in branding contracts	500
Number of ATMs participating in surcharge free network	55,000
Depreciation and accretion expenses related to ATMs and ATM-related assets | $	$ 90,138	$ 70,702	$ 64,695
Amortization of intangible assets | $	57,866	36,822	38,799
Total depreciation, accretion, and amortization of intangible assets excluded from Cost of ATM operating revenues | $	$ 148,004	$ 107,524	$ 103,494
Minimum
General And Basis Of Presentation1 [Line Items]
Number of financial institutions participating in surcharge free network	1,000
POLAND | Maximum | Sales Revenue, Net [Member] | Geographic Concentration Risk [Member]
General And Basis Of Presentation1 [Line Items]
Concentration Risk, Percentage	1.00%
Australia And New Zealand | Sales Revenue, Net [Member] | Geographic Concentration Risk [Member]
General And Basis Of Presentation1 [Line Items]
Concentration Risk, Percentage	8.80%
Europe And Africa | Sales Revenue, Net [Member] | Geographic Concentration Risk [Member]
General And Basis Of Presentation1 [Line Items]
Concentration Risk, Percentage	26.80%
North America | Sales Revenue, Net [Member] | Geographic Concentration Risk [Member]
General And Basis Of Presentation1 [Line Items]
Concentration Risk, Percentage	64.40%
Cardtronics Mexico
General And Basis Of Presentation1 [Line Items]
Ownership in subsidiary, as a percent	95.70%