Consolidated Statements of Income (Loss) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017		Dec. 31, 2016
Consolidated Statements of Income (Loss) [Abstract]
Net sales	$ 11,290	$ 10,116		$ 9,390
Cost of sales	6,829	6,096		5,627
Gross margin	4,461	4,020		3,763
Operating expenses:
Selling, general and administrative expenses	1,799	1,473		1,462
Research, development and engineering expenses	993	864		736
Amortization of purchased intangibles	94	75		64
Restructuring, impairment and other charges				77
Operating income	1,575	1,608		1,424
Equity in earnings of affiliated companies (Note 5)	390	361		284
Interest income	38	45		32
Interest expense	(191)	(155)		(159)
Translated earnings contract loss, net	(93)	(121)		(448)
Gain on realignment of equity investment				2,676
Other expense, net	(216)	(81)		(117)
Income before income taxes	1,503	1,657		3,692
(Provision) benefit for income taxes (Note 4)	(437)	(2,154)	[1]	3
Net income (loss) attributable to Corning Incorporated	$ 1,066	$ (497)		$ 3,695
Earnings (loss) per common share attributable to Corning Incorporated:
Basic (Note 16)	$ 1.19	$ (0.66)		$ 3.53
Diluted (Note 16)	1.13	(0.66)		3.23
Dividends declared per common share	$ 0.72	$ 0.62		$ 0.54

[1] In December 2017, the U.S. enacted the 2017 Tax Act which resulted in significant changes to our provision for income taxes during the fourth quarter of 2017. Refer to Note 4 (Income Taxes) to the Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.