Goodwill and Intangible Assets - Change in carrying amount of goodwill (Details) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2021 USD ($)
Goodwill [Rollforward]
Beginning Balance	$ 671,122
Goodwill on acquisition	49,171
Ending Balance	720,293
Banco Popular de Puerto Rico
Goodwill [Rollforward]
Beginning Balance	320,248
Goodwill on acquisition	0
Ending Balance	320,248
Popular U.S.
Goodwill [Rollforward]
Beginning Balance	350,874
Goodwill on acquisition	49,171
Ending Balance	$ 400,045

Amount after accumulated impairment loss of an asset representing future economic benefits arising from other assets acquired in a business combination that are not individually identified and separately recognized.

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 942
-SubTopic 210
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.9-03(10)(1))
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120398452&loc=d3e534808-122878

Reference 2: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 350
-SubTopic 20
-Section 45
-Paragraph 5
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=120320667&loc=SL49117168-202975

Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/exampleRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 852
-SubTopic 10
-Section 55
-Paragraph 10
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=84165509&loc=d3e56426-112766

Reference 4: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 350
-SubTopic 20
-Section 45
-Paragraph 1
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=99380562&loc=d3e13770-109266

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Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant