Document and Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Oct. 01, 2011	Dec. 02, 2011	Apr. 01, 2011
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Oct. 01, 2011
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2011
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Trading Symbol	KLIC
Entity Registrant Name	KULICKE & SOFFA INDUSTRIES INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000056978
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--10-01
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		73,658,871
Entity Public Float			$ 646,900,000