Revenue Recognition (Disaggregation of Revenue by Major Product and Service Categories) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2023	Mar. 31, 2022
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	$ 900,195	$ 836,549
CAG segment revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	827,279	761,184
CAG segment revenue | CAG Diagnostics recurring revenue:
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	726,902	664,810
CAG segment revenue | IDEXX VetLab consumables
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	291,114	267,173
CAG segment revenue | Rapid assay products
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	82,032	74,519
CAG segment revenue | Reference laboratory diagnostic and consulting services
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	323,180	295,075
CAG segment revenue | CAG Diagnostics services and accessories
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	30,576	28,043
CAG segment revenue | CAG Diagnostics capital - instruments
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	33,144	36,997
CAG segment revenue | Veterinary software, services and diagnostic imaging systems
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	67,233	59,377
Water segment revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	38,883	36,371
LPD segment revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	29,208	30,870
Other segment revenue
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total revenue	$ 4,825	$ 8,124