Untitled Document

Label	Element	Value
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Document Type	dei_DocumentType	485BPOS
Document Period End Date	dei_DocumentPeriodEndDate	Dec. 31, 2017
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	T. Rowe Price Equity Income Fund, Inc.
Central Index Key	dei_EntityCentralIndexKey	0000775688
Amendment Flag	dei_AmendmentFlag	false
Document Creation Date	dei_DocumentCreationDate	Apr. 26, 2018
Document Effective Date	dei_DocumentEffectiveDate	May 01, 2018
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	May 01, 2018

Registrant Name

dei_EntityRegistrantName

T. Rowe Price Equity Income Fund, Inc.

Risk/Return [Heading]

rr_RiskReturnHeading

T. Rowe Price
Equity Income Fund

Investor Class

I Class

Advisor Class

R Class

SUMMARY

Objective, Primary [Text Block]

rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock

The fund seeks a high level of dividend income and long-term capital growth primarily through investments in stocks.

Expense Narrative [Text Block]

rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock

This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the fund. You may also incur brokerage commissions and other charges when buying or selling shares of the fund, which are not reflected in the table.

Operating Expenses Caption [Text]

rr_OperatingExpensesCaption

Annual fund operating expenses
(expenses that you pay each year as a
percentage of the value of your investment)

Portfolio Turnover [Text Block]

rr_PortfolioTurnoverTextBlock

The fund pays transaction costs, such as commissions, when it buys and sells securities (or “turns over” its portfolio). A higher portfolio turnover rate may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when the fund’s shares are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in annual fund operating expenses or in the example, affect the fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 20.2% of the average value of its portfolio.

Expense Exchange Traded Fund Commissions [Text]

rr_ExpenseExchangeTradedFundCommissions

You may also incur brokerage commissions and other charges when buying or selling shares of the fund, which are not reflected in the table.

Expense Example Narrative [Text Block]

rr_ExpenseExampleNarrativeTextBlock

This example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the fund with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. The example assumes that you invest $10,000 in the fund for the time periods indicated and then redeem all of your shares at the end of those periods, that your investment has a 5% return each year, and that the fund’s operating expenses remain the same. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:

Strategy Narrative [Text Block]

rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock

The fund will normally invest at least 80% of its net assets (including any borrowings for investment purposes) in common stocks, with an emphasis on large-capitalization stocks that have a strong track record of paying dividends or that are believed to be undervalued.

The fund typically employs a “value” approach in selecting investments. The fund’s in-house research team seeks companies that appear to be undervalued by various measures and may be temporarily out of favor but have good prospects for capital appreciation and dividend growth.

In selecting investments, the fund’s investment adviser generally looks for companies in the aggregate with one or more of the following:

an established operating history;

above-average dividend yield relative to the Russell 1000 Value Index;

low price/earnings ratio relative to the Russell 1000 Value Index;

a sound balance sheet and other positive financial characteristics; or

low stock price relative to a company’s underlying value as measured by assets, cash flow, or business franchises.

The adviser generally seeks investments in large-capitalization companies and the fund’s yield, which reflects the level of dividends paid by the fund, is expected to normally exceed the yield of the Russell 1000 Value Index. In pursuing its investment objective, the fund has the discretion to deviate from its normal investment criteria. These situations might arise when the fund’s adviser believes a security could increase in value for a variety of reasons, including an extraordinary corporate event, a new product introduction or innovation, a favorable competitive development, or a change in management.

While most assets will typically be invested in U.S. common stocks, the fund may invest in foreign stocks in keeping with the fund’s objective. The fund may at times invest significantly in certain sectors, such as the financials sector.

The fund may sell securities for a variety of reasons, such as to secure gains, limit losses, or redeploy assets into more promising opportunities.

Risk Narrative [Text Block]

rr_RiskNarrativeTextBlock

As with any mutual fund, there is no guarantee that the fund will achieve its objective. The fund’s share price fluctuates, which means you could lose money by investing in the fund. The principal risks of investing in this fund are summarized as follows:

Active management risks The investment adviser’s judgments about the attractiveness, value, or potential appreciation of the fund’s investments may prove to be incorrect. The fund could underperform in comparison to other funds with a similar benchmark or similar objectives and investment strategies if the fund’s overall investment selections or strategies fail to produce the intended results.

Risks of stock investing Stocks generally fluctuate in value more than bonds and may decline significantly over short time periods. There is a chance that stock prices overall will decline because stock markets tend to move in cycles, with periods of rising and falling prices. The value of a stock in which the fund invests may decline due to general weakness in the stock market or because of factors that affect a particular company or industry.

Investment style risks Different investment styles tend to shift in and out of favor depending on market conditions and investor sentiment. The fund’s value approach to investing could cause it to underperform other stock funds that employ a different investment style. The intrinsic value of a stock with value characteristics may not be fully recognized by the market for a long time or a stock judged to be undervalued may actually be appropriately priced at a low level.

Dividend-paying stock risks The fund’s emphasis on dividend-paying stocks could cause the fund to underperform similar funds that invest without consideration of a company’s track record of paying dividends. Stocks of companies with a history of paying dividends may not participate in a broad market advance to the same degree as most other stocks, and a sharp rise in interest rates or economic downturn could cause a company to unexpectedly reduce or eliminate its dividend.

Market capitalization risks Although stocks issued by larger companies tend to have less overall volatility than stocks issued by smaller companies, larger companies may not be able to attain the high growth rates of successful smaller companies, especially during strong economic periods. In addition, larger companies may be less capable of responding quickly to competitive challenges and industry changes, and may suffer sharper price declines as a result of earnings disappointments.

Foreign investing risks The fund’s investments in foreign securities may be adversely affected by local, political, social, and economic conditions overseas, greater volatility, reduced liquidity, or decreases in foreign currency values relative to the U.S. dollar. These risks are heightened for the fund’s investments in emerging markets, which are more susceptible to governmental interference, less efficient trading markets, and the imposition of local taxes or restrictions on gaining access to sales proceeds for foreign investors.

Sector concentration risks At times, the fund may have a significant portion of its assets invested in securities of companies conducting business in a broadly related group of industries within an economic sector. Companies in the same economic sector may be similarly affected by economic or market events, making the fund more vulnerable to unfavorable developments in that economic sector than funds that invest more broadly. For example, the fund may have a significant portion of its assets invested in securities of companies in the financials sectors. Companies in the financials sector may be adversely impacted by, among other things, regulatory changes, economic conditions, interest rates, credit rating downgrades, and decreased liquidity in credit markets.

Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]

rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading

Performance

Performance Information Illustrates Variability of Returns [Text]

rr_PerformanceInformationIllustratesVariabilityOfReturns

The following performance information provides some indication of the risks of investing in the fund.

The following bar chart illustrates how much returns can differ from year to year by showing calendar year returns and the best and worst calendar quarter returns during those years for the fund’s Investor Class. Returns for other share classes vary since they have different expenses.

The following table shows the average annual total returns for each class of the fund that has been in operation for at least one full calendar year, and also compares the returns with the returns of a relevant broad-based market index, as well as with the returns of one or more comparative indexes that have investment characteristics similar to those of the fund.

Performance Availability Website Address [Text]

rr_PerformanceAvailabilityWebSiteAddress

troweprice.com

Bar Chart [Heading]

rr_BarChartHeading

Equity Income Fund
Calendar Year Returns

Performance Table Heading

rr_PerformanceTableHeading

Average Annual Total Returns

Periods ended
December 31, 2017

Performance Table Uses Highest Federal Rate

rr_PerformanceTableUsesHighestFederalRate

After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes.

Performance Table One Class of after Tax Shown [Text]

rr_PerformanceTableOneClassOfAfterTaxShown

After-tax returns are shown only for the Investor Class and will differ for other share classes.

Performance Table Closing [Text Block]

rr_PerformanceTableClosingTextBlock

Updated performance information is available through troweprice.com.

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Management fees

rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets

0.53%

Other expenses

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

0.12%

1 year

rr_ExpenseExampleYear01

$ 66

5 years

rr_ExpenseExampleYear05

362

2008

rr_AnnualReturn2008

(35.75%)

2010

rr_AnnualReturn2010

15.15%

2012

rr_AnnualReturn2012

17.25%

2014

rr_AnnualReturn2014

7.49%

2016

rr_AnnualReturn2016

19.28%

Highest Quarterly Return, Label

rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel

Best Quarter

Highest Quarterly Return

rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn

19.44%

Lowest Quarterly Return, Date

rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate

Dec. 31, 2008

1 Year

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

16.18%

10 Years

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

6.91%

Inception date

rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate

Oct. 31, 1985

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Management fees

rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets

0.53%

Other expenses

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

0.02%

1 year

rr_ExpenseExampleYear01

$ 56

5 years

rr_ExpenseExampleYear05

307

1 Year

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

16.31%

10 Years

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

Inception date

rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate

Dec. 17, 2015

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Management fees

rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets

0.53%

Other expenses

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

0.16%

1 year

rr_ExpenseExampleYear01

$ 96

5 years

rr_ExpenseExampleYear05

520

1 Year

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

15.84%

10 Years

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

6.65%

Inception date

rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate

Mar. 31, 2000

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Management fees

rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets

0.53%

Other expenses

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

0.19%

1 year

rr_ExpenseExampleYear01

$ 124

5 years

rr_ExpenseExampleYear05

670

1 Year

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

15.52%

10 Years

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

6.36%

Inception date

rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate

Sep. 30, 2002

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

5 Years

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05

10.66%

Since inception

rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception

1 Year

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

11.14%

10 Years

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

5.43%

Inception date

rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate

Oct. 31, 1985

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

5 Years

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05

14.04%

^[2]

Since inception

rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception

15.44%

^[2],[3]

1 Year

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01

21.83%

10 Years

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10

8.50%

Inception date

rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate

Dec. 17, 2015

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

5 Years

rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05

12.98%

Since inception

rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception

15.66%

^[3]


Exhibit	Exhibit No.
XBRL Instance Document	EX-101.INS
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document	EX-101.SCH
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document	EX-101.CAL
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document	EX-101.DEF
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Labels Linkbase Document	EX-101.LAB
XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document	EX-101.PRE


Signature	Title	Date


/s/Edward C. Bernard	Chairman of the Board	May 15, 2018
Edward C. Bernard	(Chief Executive Officer)


/s/Catherine D. Mathews	Treasurer	May 15, 2018
Catherine D. Mathews	(Chief Financial Officer)
	and Vice President

*
Teresa Bryce Bazemore	Director	May 15, 2018


*
Ronald J. Daniels	Director	May 15, 2018


*
Bruce W. Duncan	Director	May 15, 2018


*
Robert J. Gerrard, Jr.	Director	May 15, 2018


*
Paul F. McBride	Director	May 15, 2018


*
Cecilia E. Rouse	Director	May 15, 2018


*
John G. Schreiber	Director	May 15, 2018



/s/Robert W. Sharps	Director	May 15, 2018
Robert W. Sharps


*
Mark. R. Tercek	Director	May 15, 2018


*/s/David Oestreicher	Vice President and	May 15, 2018
David Oestreicher	Attorney-In-Fact


ALL CORPORATIONS/TRUSTS /s/Edward C. Bernard
Edward C. Bernard /s/Catherine D. Mathews	Chairman of the Board (Principal Executive Officer) Director/Trustee	April 27, 2017
Catherine D. Mathews /s/Anthony W. Deering	Treasurer (Principal Financial Officer) Vice President	April 27, 2017
Anthony W. Deering /s/Bruce W. Duncan	Director/Trustee	April 27, 2017
Bruce W. Duncan /s/Robert J. Gerrard, Jr.	Director/Trustee	April 27, 2017
Robert J. Gerrard, Jr. /s/Paul F. McBride	Director/Trustee	April 27, 2017
Paul F. McBride /s/Cecilia E. Rouse	Director/Trustee	April 27, 2017
Cecilia E. Rouse /s/John G. Schreiber	Director/Trustee	April 27, 2017
John G. Schreiber /s/Mark R. Tercek	Director/Trustee	April 27, 2017
Mark R. Tercek	Director/Trustee	April 27, 2017


/s/Teresa Bryce Bazemore
Teresa Bryce Bazemore, Director	Date: January 1, 2018


/s/Ronald J. Daniels
Ronald J. Daniels, Director	Date: January 1, 2018


Darrell N. Braman, Secretary


Darrell N. Braman, Secretary


Darrell N. Braman, Secretary