Document and Entity Information - USD ($) $ in Billions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Feb. 19, 2016	Jun. 30, 2015
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K/A
Amendment Flag	true
Amendment Description	This Amendment No. 1 (“Amendment”) to the Annual Report on Form 10-K of Stifel Financial Corp. (the “Company”) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on March 1, 2016 (the “Original Form 10-K”), is being filed for the purpose of updating Items 6, 7, and 8 of Part II. In the Original Form 10-K, the Consolidated Statements of Operations, the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income, and Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements were incorrectly labeled ‘Unaudited.” Additionally, in this Amendment, we are adjusting the Original Form 10-K for immaterial clerical errors we identified in Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations and Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows and immaterial adjustments to Note 3 and Note 9 to the Consolidated Financial Statements. Pursuant to Rule 12b-15 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), this Form 10-K/A also contains currently dated certifications pursuant to Sections 302 and 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. This Form 10-K/A also contains a currently dated consent of Ernst & Young LLP, the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm. Accordingly, Item 15 of Part IV has been amended in its entirety to include the currently dated certifications as exhibits.
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2015
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2015
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Entity Registrant Name	STIFEL FINANCIAL CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000720672
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		67,171,812
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Public Float			$ 4.2
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes