Document and Entity Information	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2014	Oct. 23, 2014
Document and Entity Information
Entity Registrant Name	REALTY INCOME CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000726728
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2014
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		222,686,209
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2014
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3