Document and Entity Information	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2012
Document and Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Mar. 31, 2012
Amendment Flag	false
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q1
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Entity Registrant Name	General Electric Company
Entity Central Index Key	0000040545
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding	10,587,317,000