Label	Element	Value
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Registrant Name	dei_EntityRegistrantName	VANGUARD VARIABLE INSURANCE FUNDS
Prospectus Date	rr_ProspectusDate	Apr. 28, 2017
Money Market Portfolio
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Risk/Return [Heading]	rr_RiskReturnHeading	Money Market Portfolio
Objective [Heading]	rr_ObjectiveHeading	Investment Objective
Objective, Primary [Text Block]	rr_ObjectivePrimaryTextBlock	The Portfolio seeks to provide current income while maintaining liquidity and a stable share price of $1.
Expense [Heading]	rr_ExpenseHeading	Fees and Expenses
Expense Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseNarrativeTextBlock	The following table describes the fees and expenses you may pay if you buy and hold shares of the Portfolio. The expenses shown in the table and in the example that follow do not reflect additional fees and expenses associated with the annuity or life insurance program through which you invest. If those additional fees and expenses were included, overall expenses would be higher.
Operating Expenses Caption [Text]	rr_OperatingExpensesCaption	Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses (Expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)
Expense Example [Heading]	rr_ExpenseExampleHeading	Example
Expense Example Narrative [Text Block]	rr_ExpenseExampleNarrativeTextBlock	The following example is intended to help you compare the cost of investing in the Portfolio with the cost of investing in other mutual funds. It illustrates the hypothetical expenses that you would incur over various periods if you were to invest $10,000 in the Portfolio’s shares. This example assumes that the Portfolio provides a return of 5% each year and that total annual portfolio operating expenses remain as stated in the preceding table. You would incur these hypothetical expenses whether or not you redeem your investment at the end of the given period. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on these assumptions your costs would be:
Strategy [Heading]	rr_StrategyHeading	Principal Investment Policies
Strategy Narrative [Text Block]	rr_StrategyNarrativeTextBlock	The Portfolio invests primarily in high-quality, short-term money market instruments, including certificates of deposit, banker’s acceptances, commercial paper, Eurodollar and Yankee obligations, and other money market securities. To be considered high quality, a security must be determined by Vanguard to present minimal credit risk based in part on a consideration of maturity, portfolio diversification, portfolio liquidity, and credit quality. The Portfolio invests more than 25% of its assets in securities issued by companies in the financial services industry. The Portfolio maintains a dollar-weighted average maturity of 60 days or less and a dollar-weighted average life of 120 days or less.
Strategy Portfolio Concentration [Text]	rr_StrategyPortfolioConcentration	The Portfolio invests more than 25% of its assets in securities issued by companies in the financial services industry.
Risk [Heading]	rr_RiskHeading	Principal Risks
Risk Narrative [Text Block]	rr_RiskNarrativeTextBlock	The Portfolio is designed for investors with a low tolerance for risk; however, the Portfolio is subject to the following risks, which could affect the Portfolio’s performance: • Income risk, which is the chance that the Portfolio’s income will decline because of falling interest rates. Because the Portfolio’s income is based on short-term interest rates—which can fluctuate significantly over short periods—income risk is expected to be high. • Manager risk, which is the chance that poor security selection will cause the Portfolio to underperform relevant benchmarks or other funds with a similar investment objective. • Credit risk, which is the chance that the issuer of a security will fail to pay interest or principal in a timely manner or that negative perceptions of the issuer’s ability to make such payments will cause the price of that security to decline. Credit risk should be very low for the Portfolio because it invests primarily in securities that are considered to be of high quality. • Foreign investment risk. The Portfolio’s investment in Eurodollar and Yankee obligations, which include certificates of deposit issued in U.S. dollars by foreign banks and foreign branches of U.S. banks, subjects it to the same risks as U.S. money market instruments, such as income risk and credit risk. Additional risks of Eurodollar and Yankee obligations include the chance that a foreign government will not let U.S. dollar-denominated assets leave the country, the chance that the banks that issue Eurodollar obligations may not be subject to the same regulations as U.S. banks, and the chance that adverse political or economic developments will affect investments in a foreign country. • Industry concentration risk, which is the chance that there will be overall problems affecting a particular industry. Because the Portfolio invests more than 25% of its assets in securities issued by companies in the financial services industry, the Portfolio’s performance depends to a greater extent on the overall condition of that industry and is more susceptible to events affecting that industry. You could lose money by investing in the Portfolio. Although the Portfolio seeks to preserve the value of your investment at $1.00 per share, it cannot guarantee it will do so. The Portfolio may impose a fee upon sale of your shares or may temporarily suspend your ability to sell shares if the Portfolio’s liquidity falls below required minimums because of market conditions or other factors. An investment in the Portfolio is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency. The Portfolio’s sponsor has no legal obligation to provide financial support to the Portfolio, and you should not expect that the sponsor will provide financial support to the Portfolio at any time.
Risk Lose Money [Text]	rr_RiskLoseMoney	You could lose money by investing in the Portfolio.
Risk Money Market Fund [Text]	rr_RiskMoneyMarketFund	Although the Portfolio seeks to preserve the value of your investment at $1.00 per share, it cannot guarantee it will do so.
Risk Not Insured Depository Institution [Text]	rr_RiskNotInsuredDepositoryInstitution	An investment in the Portfolio is not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other government agency.
Bar Chart and Performance Table [Heading]	rr_BarChartAndPerformanceTableHeading	Annual Total Returns
Performance Narrative [Text Block]	rr_PerformanceNarrativeTextBlock	The following bar chart and table are intended to help you understand the risks of investing in the Portfolio. The bar chart shows how the performance of the Portfolio has varied from one calendar year to another over the periods shown. The table shows how the average annual total returns of the Portfolio compare with those of a relevant market index and a comparative benchmark, which have investment characteristics similar to those of the Portfolio. The Portfolio’s returns are net of its expenses but do not reflect additional fees and expenses that are deducted by the annuity or life insurance program through which you invest. If such fees and expenses were included in the calculation of the Portfolio’s returns, the returns would be lower. Returns for the Variable Insurance Money Market Funds Average are derived from data provided by Lipper, a Thomson Reuters Company. Keep in mind that the Portfolio’s past performance does not indicate how the Portfolio will perform in the future. Updated performance information is available on our website for Financial Advisors at advisors.vanguard.com or by calling Vanguard toll-free at 800-522-5555.
Performance Information Illustrates Variability of Returns [Text]	rr_PerformanceInformationIllustratesVariabilityOfReturns	The following bar chart and table are intended to help you understand the risks of investing in the Portfolio. The bar chart shows how the performance of the Portfolio has varied from one calendar year to another over the periods shown. The table shows how the average annual total returns of the Portfolio compare with those of a relevant market index and a comparative benchmark, which have investment characteristics similar to those of the Portfolio.
Performance Availability Phone [Text]	rr_PerformanceAvailabilityPhone	800-522-5555
Performance Availability Website Address [Text]	rr_PerformanceAvailabilityWebSiteAddress	advisors.vanguard.com
Performance Past Does Not Indicate Future [Text]	rr_PerformancePastDoesNotIndicateFuture	Keep in mind that the Portfolio’s past performance does not indicate how the Portfolio will perform in the future.
Bar Chart [Heading]	rr_BarChartHeading	Annual Total Returns — Money Market Portfolio
Bar Chart Does Not Reflect Sales Loads [Text]	rr_BarChartDoesNotReflectSalesLoads	The Portfolio’s returns are net of its expenses but do not reflect additional fees and expenses that are deducted by the annuity or life insurance program through which you invest. If such fees and expenses were included in the calculation of the Portfolio’s returns, the returns would be lower.
Bar Chart Closing [Text Block]	rr_BarChartClosingTextBlock	During the periods shown in the bar chart, the highest return for a calendar quarter was 1.31% (quarter ended September 30, 2007), and the lowest return for a quarter was 0.02% (quarter ended September 30, 2014).
Performance Table Heading	rr_PerformanceTableHeading	Average Annual Total Returns for Periods Ended December 31, 2016
Money Market Portfolio | Money Market Portfolio
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
Management Fees	rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets	0.13%
12b-1 Distribution Fee	rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets	none
Other Expenses	rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets	0.03%
Total Annual Portfolio Operating Expenses	rr_ExpensesOverAssets	0.16%	[1]
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleYear01	$ 16
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear03	52
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear05	90
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleYear10	205
1 Year	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01	16
3 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03	52
5 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05	90
10 Years	rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10	$ 205
2007	rr_AnnualReturn2007	5.25%
2008	rr_AnnualReturn2008	2.83%
2009	rr_AnnualReturn2009	0.62%
2010	rr_AnnualReturn2010	0.23%
2011	rr_AnnualReturn2011	0.17%
2012	rr_AnnualReturn2012	0.14%
2013	rr_AnnualReturn2013	0.11%
2014	rr_AnnualReturn2014	0.10%
2015	rr_AnnualReturn2015	0.15%
2016	rr_AnnualReturn2016	0.48%
Highest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_HighestQuarterlyReturnLabel	highest return
Highest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturnDate	Sep. 30, 2007
Highest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartHighestQuarterlyReturn	1.31%
Lowest Quarterly Return, Label	rr_LowestQuarterlyReturnLabel	lowest return
Lowest Quarterly Return, Date	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturnDate	Sep. 30, 2014
Lowest Quarterly Return	rr_BarChartLowestQuarterlyReturn	0.02%
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	0.48%
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.19%
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	0.99%
Money Market Portfolio | Citigroup 3-Month U.S. Treasury Bill Index
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	0.27%	[2]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	0.08%	[2]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	0.72%	[2]
Money Market Portfolio | Variable Insurance Money Market Funds Average
Risk/Return:	rr_RiskReturnAbstract
1 Year	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear01	0.06%	[2]
5 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear05	none	[2],[3]
10 Years	rr_AverageAnnualReturnYear10	0.71%	[2]

[1] Vanguard and the Portfolio's Board have voluntarily agreed to temporarily limit certain net operating expenses in excess of the Portfolio's daily yield so as to maintain a zero or positive yield for the Portfolio. Vanguard and the Portfolio's Board may terminate the temporary expense limitation at any time.

[2] Comparative Benchmarks (reflect no deduction for fees or expenses)

[3] 0.00%