Acquisitions Acquisitions (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands		3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Oct. 05, 2020	Sep. 30, 2020	Sep. 30, 2019	Sep. 30, 2020	Sep. 30, 2019	Dec. 31, 2019	Aug. 13, 2019
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Acquisition date						Aug. 13, 2019
Acquired entity						Merchants Preferred
Description of acquired entity						a nationwide provider of virtual lease-to-own services
Aggregate purchase price						$ 46,400
Cash consideration						$ 28,000
Common stock consideration						701,918 shares of our common stock
Common stock price							$ 27.31
Working capital adjustment						$ 900
Goodwill		$ 70,217		$ 70,217		$ 70,217
Description of goodwill recognized						consists of the excess of the net purchase price over the fair value of the net assets acquired
Proceeds from Sale of Property, Plant, and Equipment				196	$ 16,922
Royalty income and fees		4,716	$ 3,840	13,833	$ 12,370
On rent		680,955		680,955		$ 697,270
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net		$ 145,298		$ 145,298		$ 166,138
Subsequent Event [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Proceeds from Sale of Property, Plant, and Equipment	$ 16,000
On rent	31,100
Property, Plant and Equipment, Net	$ 800
Subsequent Event, Date	Oct. 05, 2020
Subsequent Event, Description	asset purchase agreement to sell all 99 Rent-A-Center Business corporate stores in the state of California to an experienced franchisee
Subsequent Event [Member] | Franchise fees [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Royalty income and fees	$ 1,000
Merchants Preferred [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Receivables							$ 1,813
Prepaid expenses and other assets							154
Rental merchandise							17,904
Software							4,300
Right of use operating leases							404
Other intangible assets							8,900
Goodwill							13,403
Lease liabilities							(487)
Net identifiable assets acquired							$ 46,391
Intangible assets remaining lives						10 years