Document and Entity Information - USD ($) $ in Billions	12 Months Ended
	Jan. 02, 2016	Feb. 19, 2016	Jul. 02, 2015
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Jan. 02, 2016
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2015
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Entity Registrant Name	ST JUDE MEDICAL INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000203077
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--01-02
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		283,616,926
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Public Float			$ 20.6
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes