Net Income per Share (Schedule of Calculation of Numerator and Denominator in Earnings per Share) (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Jan. 31, 2016	Jan. 31, 2015	Jan. 31, 2014
Numerator:
Net income attributable to Raven Industries, Inc.	$ 4,776	$ 31,733	$ 42,903
Denominator:
Weighted average common shares outstanding (in shares)	37,237,717	36,859,026	36,379,356
Weighted average stock units outstanding (in shares)	86,745	69,484	67,724
Denominator for basic calculation (in shares)	37,324,462	36,928,510	36,447,080
Weighted average common shares outstanding (in shares)	37,237,717	36,859,026	36,379,356
Weighted average stock units outstanding (in shares)	86,745	69,484	67,724
Dilutive impact of stock options and RSUs (in shares)	75,481	174,784	198,295
Denominator for diluted calculation (in shares)	37,399,943	37,103,294	36,645,375
Net income per share - basic (in usd per share)	$ 0.13	$ 0.86	$ 1.18
Net income per share - diluted (in usd per share)	$ 0.13	$ 0.86	$ 1.17