Income Taxes (Details) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended
Feb. 28, 2011
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Tax benefit related to qualifying research and development activities	$ 2.0

Tax benefit related to qualifying research and development activities.

No definition available.

Name:	prgs_TaxBenefitRelatedToQualifyingResearchAndDevelopmentActivities
Namespace Prefix:	prgs_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	duration