Label	Element	Value
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	HARBOR FUNDS
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	Mar. 01, 2023
Harbor Core Bond Fund
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	<span style="color:#FFFFFF;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:18pt;">Harbor Core Bond Fund</span><span style="color:#FFFFFF;font-family:Arial;font-size:16pt;font-weight:bold;">Fund Summary</span>
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	<span style="color:#004DD6;font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:14pt;font-weight:bold;">Investment Objective</span>
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The Fund seeks total return.
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	<span style="color:#004DD6;font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:14pt;font-weight:bold;">Fees and Expenses of the Fund</span>
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	This table describes the fees and expenses that you may pay if you buy, hold and sell shares of the Fund. You may pay other fees, such as brokerage commissions and other fees to financial intermediaries, which are not reflected in the table and example below.
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:9pt;font-weight:bold;">Annual Fund Operating Expenses</span><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:9pt;"> (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</span>
Fee Waiver or Reimbursement over Assets, Date of Termination	rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssetsDateOfTermination	<span style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:8pt;font-style:italic;">February </span><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:8pt;font-style:italic;line-height:8.5pt;"> </span><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:8pt;font-style:italic;">29, 2024</span>
Portfolio Turnover [Heading]	rr_PortfolioTurnoverHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:9pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:4pt;">Portfolio Turnover</span>
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 may indicate higher transaction costs and may result in higher taxes when shares of the Fund are held in a taxable account. These costs, which are not reflected in the Annual Fund Operating Expenses or in the Expense Example, do affect the Fund’s performance. During the most recent fiscal year, the Fund’s portfolio turnover rate was 60%.
Portfolio Turnover, Rate	rr_PortfolioTurnoverRate	60.00%
Expenses Restated to Reflect Current [Text]	rr_ExpensesRestatedToReflectCurrent	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:8pt;font-style:italic;">Restated to reflect current fees.</span>
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:9pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:4pt;">Expense Example</span>
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. The Example also assumes 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, under these assumptions, your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	<span style="color:#004DD6;font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:14pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Investment Strategy</span>
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Fund invests primarily in investment-grade fixed income securities of issuers located in the U.S. Under normal market conditions, the Fund invests at least 80% of its net assets, plus borrowings for investment purposes, in a diversified portfolio of fixed income instruments. Fixed income instruments include bonds, debt securities and other similar instruments issued by various public- or private-sector entities.The Subadvisor’s approach is grounded in detailed bottom-up research and emphasizes careful security selection through:◾Rigorous fundamental credit analysis of the issuer,◾A detailed review of the structural features of the security, and◾Relative-value comparisons to other opportunities.In order to be selected for the portfolio, a security must be attractive with respect to all three of these factors. If one factor deteriorates, the security becomes a candidate for sale.When forming an opinion on the creditworthiness of an issuer, the Subadvisor evaluates many factors, including financial performance, balance sheet strength, management quality, operating risk, market position, industry fundamentals, event risk, and economic sensitivity. The Subadvisor’s analysis also includes a detailed review of the underlying structural features of a bond, such as coupon type, redemption features, level of subordination, and collateral. For securitized bonds (such as mortgage-backed and asset-backed), the Subadvisor assesses factors such as issue sponsorship, structure, deal history, regulation, and liquidity. The Subadvisor also evaluates issuers with respect to environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) factors and integrates consideration of these factors into its investment process. The key ESG considerations may vary depending on the industry, sector, geographic region or other factors and the core business of each issuer. The ESG criteria utilized by the Subadvisor is only one factor among others considered in the investment process.The Subadvisor believes that it is difficult to predict the timing, direction, and magnitude of future interest-rate changes. Therefore, duration management and yield-curve positioning are not part of the Fund’s strategy.The portfolio is constructed from the bottom up and is comprised of U.S. dollar-denominated securities. The Subadvisor sets sector allocations based on its views of relative values between sectors and opportunities at the security level. A comprehensive risk overlay also influences portfolio construction. The Subadvisor systematically measures and monitors the Fund’s key risk exposures. The overall aim of the portfolio construction process is to craft a portfolio of attractively priced securities (relative to other opportunities in the universe) that when combined together in a portfolio provide what the Subadvisor believes will be attractive expected return, reasonable risk exposures, and adequate liquidity.At times, the Fund may invest a large percentage of its assets in investment-grade mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities.Credit Quality: The Fund invests primarily in investment-grade securities.Duration: The Fund’s average duration, as calculated by the Subadvisor, is normally equal to that of its benchmark, plus or minus 10%. The duration of the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond Index as of December 31, 2022 was 6.22 years. Average duration is a weighted average of all bond durations in the Fund’s portfolio, and is an approximate measure of the sensitivity of the market value of the Fund’s holdings to changes in interest rates. If the Fund’s duration is longer than the market’s duration, the Fund would be expected to experience a greater change in the value of its assets when interest rates are rising or falling than would the market as a whole.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	<span style="color:#004DD6;font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:14pt;font-weight:bold;">Principal Risks</span>
Risk Narrative [Text Block]	rr_RiskNarrativeTextBlock	There is no guarantee that the investment objective of the Fund will be achieved. Fixed income securities fluctuate in price in response to various factors, including changes in interest rates, changes in market conditions and issuer-specific events, and the value of your investment in the Fund may go down. This means that you could lose money on your investment in the Fund or the Fund may not perform as well as other possible investments.Principal risks impacting the Fund (in alphabetical order after the first four risks) include:Interest Rate Risk: As interest rates rise, the values of fixed income securities held by the Fund are likely to decrease and reduce the value of the Fund’s portfolio. Securities with longer durations tend to be more sensitive to changes in interest rates and are usually more volatile than securities with shorter durations. For example, a 5 year average duration generally means the price of a fixed income security will decrease in value by 5% if interest rates rise by 1%. Rising interest rates may lead to increased redemptions, increased volatility and decreased liquidity in the fixed income markets, making it more difficult for the Fund to sell its fixed income securities when the Subadvisor may wish to sell or must sell to meet redemptions. During periods when interest rates are low or there are negative interest rates, the Fund’s yield (and total return) also may be low or the Fund may be unable to maintain positive returns or minimize the volatility of the Fund’s net asset value per share. Changing interest rates may have unpredictable effects on the markets, may result in heightened market volatility and may detract from Fund performance. In addition, changes in monetary policy may exacerbate the risks associated with changing interest rates.Credit Risk: The issuer or guarantor of a security owned by the Fund could default on its obligation to pay principal or interest or its credit rating could be downgraded. Likewise, a counterparty to a contractual instrument owned by the Fund could default on its obligation.Market Risk: Securities markets are volatile and can decline significantly in response to adverse market, economic, political, regulatory or other developments, which may lower the value of securities held by the Fund, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably. Events such as war, acts of terrorism, social unrest, natural disasters, recessions, inflation, rapid interest rate changes, supply chain disruptions, sanctions, the spread of infectious illness or other public health threats could also significantly impact the Fund and its investments.Mortgage- and Asset-Backed Securities Risk: Mortgage and other asset-backed securities in the Fund’s portfolio may have especially volatile prices because the embedded leverage can magnify the impact of the extension or contraction event on the underlying cash flow. Mortgage-related securities are also subject to prepayment and extension risks.ESG Factors Risk: The consideration of ESG factors by the Subadvisor and/or Advisor, as applicable, could cause the Fund to perform differently than other funds. ESG factors are not the only consideration used by the Subadvisor and/or Advisor, as applicable, in making investment decisions for the Fund and the Fund may invest in a company that scores poorly on ESG factors if it scores well on other criteria. ESG factors may not be considered for every investment decision.Extension Risk: When interest rates are rising, certain callable fixed income securities may be extended because of slower than expected principal payments. This would lock in a below-market interest rate, increase the security’s duration and reduce the value of the security.Issuer Risk: An adverse event affecting a particular issuer in which the Fund is invested, such as an unfavorable earnings report, may depress the value of that issuer’s stock, sometimes rapidly or unpredictably.Liquidity Risk: A particular investment may be difficult to purchase or sell and the Fund may be unable to sell illiquid securities at an advantageous time or price or achieve its desired level of exposure to a certain sector. Liquidity risk may result from the lack of an active market, reduced number and capacity of traditional market participants to make a market in fixed income securities, and may be magnified in a rising interest rate environment or other circumstances where investor redemptions from fixed income mutual funds may be higher than normal, causing increased supply in the market due to selling activity. Valuation of investments may be difficult, particularly during periods of market volatility or reduced liquidity and for investments that trade infrequently or irregularly. In these circumstances, among others, an investment may be valued using fair value methodologies that are inherently subjective and reflect good faith judgments based on available information.Prepayment Risk: When interest rates are declining, the issuer of a fixed income security, including a pass-through security such as a mortgage-backed or an asset-backed security, may exercise its option to prepay principal earlier than scheduled, forcing the Fund to reinvest in lower yielding securities.Selection Risk: The Subadvisor’s judgment about the attractiveness, value and growth potential of a particular security may be incorrect.  The Subadvisor and/or Advisor, as applicable, potentially will be prevented from executing investment decisions at an advantageous time or price as a result of domestic or global market disruptions, particularly disruptions causing heightened market volatility and reduced market liquidity, as well as increased or changing regulations.  Thus, investments that the Subadvisor and/or Advisor, as applicable, believes represent an attractive opportunity or in which the Fund seeks to obtain exposure may be unavailable entirely or in the specific quantities or prices sought by the Subadvisor and/or Advisor, as applicable, and the Fund may need to obtain the exposure through less advantageous or indirect investments or forgo the investment at the time.U.S. Government Securities Risk: Securities issued or guaranteed by U.S. government agencies or government-sponsored entities may not be backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government. As a result, no assurance can be given that the U.S. government will provide financial support to these securities or issuers (such as securities issued by the Federal National Mortgage Association, or the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation). Although certain government securities are backed by the full faith and credit of the U.S. government (such as securities issued by the Government National Mortgage Association), circumstances could arise that would delay or prevent the payment of interest or principal. It is possible that issuers of U.S. government securities will not have the funds to meet their payment obligations in the future and, in these circumstances, the Fund’s returns may be adversely affected.
Risk Lose Money [Text]	rr_RiskLoseMoney	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">This means </span><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">that you could lose money on your investment in the Fund or the Fund may not perform as well as other possible investments.</span>
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	<span style="color:#004DD6;font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:14pt;font-weight:bold;">Performance</span>
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The following bar chart and tables are intended to help you understand the risks and potential rewards of investing in the Fund. The bar chart shows how the performance of the Fund’s Institutional Class has varied from one calendar year to another over the periods shown. The table shows how the Fund’s average annual total returns  of the share classes presented compared to the returns of the Fund’s benchmark index, which includes securities with investment characteristics similar to those held by the Fund.Please note that the Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future. To obtain updated performance information please visit the Fund’s website at harborcapital.com or call 800-422-1050.
Performance Information Illustrates Variability of Returns [Text]	rr_PerformanceInformationIllustratesVariabilityOfReturns	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">The bar chart shows how the performance of the Fund’s </span><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">Institutional Class has varied from one calendar year to another over the periods shown. The table shows how the Fund’s average annual total returns  of the share classes presented compared to the returns of the Fund’s benchmark index, which includes securities with investment characteristics similar to those held by the Fund.</span>
Performance Availability Phone [Text]	rr_PerformanceAvailabilityPhone	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">800-422-1050</span>
Performance Availability Website Address [Text]	rr_PerformanceAvailabilityWebSiteAddress	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">harborcapital.com</span>
Performance Past Does Not Indicate Future [Text]	rr_PerformancePastDoesNotIndicateFuture	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">Please note that the Fund’s past performance (before and after taxes) is not necessarily an indication of how the Fund will perform in the future.</span>
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:9pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:4pt;">Calendar Year Total Returns for Institutional Class Shares</span>
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the time periods shown in the bar chart, the Fund’s highest and lowest returns for a calendar quarter were:Total ReturnsQuarter/YearBest Quarter4.20%Q2 2020Worst Quarter-5.96%Q1 2022
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	<span style="font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:9pt;font-weight:bold;margin-left:3pt;">Average Annual Total Returns — As of December 31, </span><span style="font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:9pt;font-weight:bold;">2022</span>
Performance Table Uses Highest Federal Rate	rr_PerformanceTableUsesHighestFederalRate	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;margin-left:0%;">After-tax returns are calculated using the historical highest individual </span><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">federal marginal income tax rates and do not reflect the impact of state and local taxes.</span>
Performance Table Not Relevant to Tax Deferred	rr_PerformanceTableNotRelevantToTaxDeferred	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;"> Actual after-tax returns will depend on </span><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">a shareholder’s individual tax situation and may differ from those shown. The after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt shareholders or shareholders who hold their Fund shares through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or individual retirement account. </span>
Performance Table One Class of after Tax Shown [Text]	rr_PerformanceTableOneClassOfAfterTaxShown	<span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">After-tax returns are shown for Institutional </span><span style="color:#000000;font-family:Times New Roman;font-size:9pt;">Class shares only. After-tax returns for the Retirement Class of shares will vary.</span>
Performance Table Closing [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceTableClosingTextBlock	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. Actual after-tax returns will depend on a shareholder’s individual tax situation and may differ from those shown. The after-tax returns shown are not relevant to tax-exempt shareholders or shareholders who hold their Fund shares through a tax-deferred arrangement, such as a 401(k) plan or individual retirement account. After-tax returns are shown for Institutional Class shares only. After-tax returns for the Retirement Class of shares will vary.
Harbor Core Bond Fund | Retirement Class
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Management Fees	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.23%	[1]
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	0.13%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.36%
Expense Reimbursement	rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets	(0.10%)	[2]
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver or Expense Reimbursement	rr_NetExpensesOverAssets	0.26%	[2]
One Year	rr_ExpenseExampleYear01	$ 27
Three Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear03	106
Five Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear05	192
Ten Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear10	$ 446
One Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(13.28%)
Annualized Five Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05
Annualized Ten Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10
Annualized Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	0.57%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Jan. 06, 2018
Harbor Core Bond Fund | Institutional Class
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Management Fees	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.23%	[1]
Distribution and Service (12b-1) Fees	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	0.21%
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.44%
Expense Reimbursement	rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets	(0.10%)	[2]
Total Annual Fund Operating Expenses After Fee Waiver or Expense Reimbursement	rr_NetExpensesOverAssets	0.34%	[2]
One Year	rr_ExpenseExampleYear01	$ 35
Three Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear03	131
Five Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear05	236
Ten Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear10	$ 545
2019	rr_AnnualReturn2019	8.59%
2020	rr_AnnualReturn2020	9.10%
2021	rr_AnnualReturn2021	(1.66%)
2022	rr_AnnualReturn2022	(13.36%)
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:9pt;margin-left:0.0pt;">Best Quarter</span>
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Jun. 30, 2020
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	4.20%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	<span style="font-family:Arial Narrow;font-size:9pt;margin-left:0.0pt;">Worst Quarter</span>
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Mar. 31, 2022
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	(5.96%)
One Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(13.36%)
Annualized Five Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05
Annualized Ten Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10
Annualized Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	0.49%
Inception Date	rr_AverageAnnualReturnInceptionDate	Jan. 06, 2018
Harbor Core Bond Fund | After Taxes on Distributions | Institutional Class
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
One Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(14.41%)
Annualized Five Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05
Annualized Ten Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10
Annualized Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(0.75%)
Harbor Core Bond Fund | After Taxes on Distributions and Sale of Fund Shares | Institutional Class
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
One Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(7.89%)
Annualized Five Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05
Annualized Ten Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10
Annualized Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	(0.05%)
Harbor Core Bond Fund | Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate Bond (reflects no deduction for fees, expenses or taxes)
Risk Return Abstract	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
One Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	(13.01%)	[3]
Annualized Five Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05		[3]
Annualized Ten Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10		[3]
Annualized Since Inception	rr_AverageAnnualReturnSinceInception	0.35%	[3]

[1] Restated to reflect current fees.

[2] The Advisor has contractually agreed to limit the Fund’s operating expenses, excluding interest expense (if any), to 0.26% and 0.34% for the Retirement Class and Institutional Class, respectively, through February 29, 2024. Only the Fund’s Board of Trustees may modify or terminate this agreement.

[3] Since Inception return based on the inception date of the Institutional Class shares.