Earnings Per Share (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 28, 2013	Sep. 29, 2012	Sep. 28, 2013	Sep. 29, 2012
Numerators:
Numerator for both basic and diluted EPS attributable to HNI Corporation net income	$ 28,094	$ 24,490	$ 40,923	$ 31,374
Denominators:
Denominator for basic EPS weighted-average common shares outstanding	45,317,912	45,224,059	45,295,115	45,265,050
Potentially dilutive shares from stock-based compensation plans	772,000	596,000	657,000	575,000
Denominator for diluted EPS	46,089,580	45,820,422	45,951,775	45,839,917
Earnings per share - basic	$ 0.62	$ 0.54	$ 0.90	$ 0.69
Earnings per share - diluted	$ 0.61	$ 0.53	$ 0.89	$ 0.68
Earnings Per Share, Diluted, Other Disclosures [Abstract]
Antidilutive securities excluded from computation of earnings per share	869,586	1,762,597	869,586	1,762,597