Income Taxes	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2019
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Income Taxes	Income taxes The provision for income taxes for the first three months of 2019 reflected an estimated annual tax rate of 26 percent, compared to 24 percent for the first three months of 2018, excluding the discrete items discussed in the following paragraph. The increase was largely driven by the application of U.S. tax reform provisions to the earnings of certain non-U.S. subsidiaries, which do not have a calendar fiscal year-end. These provisions did not apply to these subsidiaries in 2018. As a result of final regulations received in January 2019 providing additional guidance related to the calculation of the mandatory deemed repatriation of non-U.S. earnings due to U.S. tax reform, we recorded a discrete tax benefit of $178 million in the first quarter of 2019 to adjust unrecognized tax benefits. In addition, a discrete tax benefit of $23 million was recorded in the first three months of 2019, compared with $40 million in the first three months of 2018, for the settlement of stock-based compensation awards with associated tax deductions in excess of cumulative U.S. GAAP compensation expense. On January 31, 2018, we received a Revenue Agent's Report from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) indicating the end of the field examination of our U.S. income tax returns for 2010 to 2012. In the audits of 2007 to 2012 including the impact of a loss carryback to 2005, the IRS has proposed to tax in the United States profits earned from certain parts transactions by Caterpillar SARL (CSARL), based on the IRS examination team's application of the "substance-over-form" or "assignment-of-income" judicial doctrines. We are vigorously contesting the proposed increases to tax and penalties for these years of approximately $2.3 billion. We believe that the relevant transactions complied with applicable tax laws and did not violate judicial doctrines. We have filed U.S. income tax returns on this same basis for years after 2012. Based on the information currently available, we do not anticipate a significant change to our unrecognized tax benefits for this position within the next 12 months. We currently believe the ultimate disposition of this matter will not have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position, liquidity or results of operations.

Income taxes

The provision for income taxes for the first three months of 2019 reflected an estimated annual tax rate of 26 percent, compared to 24 percent for the first three months of 2018, excluding the discrete items discussed in the following paragraph. The increase was largely driven by the application of U.S. tax reform provisions to the earnings of certain non-U.S. subsidiaries, which do not have a calendar fiscal year-end. These provisions did not apply to these subsidiaries in 2018.

As a result of final regulations received in January 2019 providing additional guidance related to the calculation of the mandatory deemed repatriation of non-U.S. earnings due to U.S. tax reform, we recorded a discrete tax benefit of $178 million in the first quarter of 2019 to adjust unrecognized tax benefits. In addition, a discrete tax benefit of $23 million was recorded in the first three months of 2019, compared with $40 million in the first three months of 2018, for the settlement of stock-based compensation awards with associated tax deductions in excess of cumulative U.S. GAAP compensation expense.

On January 31, 2018, we received a Revenue Agent's Report from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) indicating the end of the field examination of our U.S. income tax returns for 2010 to 2012. In the audits of 2007 to 2012 including the impact of a loss carryback to 2005, the IRS has proposed to tax in the United States profits earned from certain parts transactions by Caterpillar SARL (CSARL), based on the IRS examination team's application of the "substance-over-form" or "assignment-of-income" judicial doctrines. We are vigorously contesting the proposed increases to tax and penalties for these years of approximately $2.3 billion. We believe that the relevant transactions complied with applicable tax laws and did not violate judicial doctrines. We have filed U.S. income tax returns on this same basis for years after 2012. Based on the information currently available, we do not anticipate a significant change to our unrecognized tax benefits for this position within the next 12 months. We currently believe the ultimate disposition of this matter will not have a material adverse effect on our consolidated financial position, liquidity or results of operations.