CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (Unaudited) (Unaudited) (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2017	Mar. 31, 2016
Income Statement [Abstract]
Processing fees, administrative service fees, and other fees charged to merchant alliances under equity method	$ 52	$ 53

Processing fees, administrative service fees and other fees charged to merchant alliances accounted for under the equity method.

No definition available.

Name:	fdc_ProcessingFeesAdministrativeServiceFeesAndOtherFeesChargedToMerchantAlliances
Namespace Prefix:	fdc_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	duration