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Investment Securities (Details Textuals) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Investment Securities (Details) [Abstract]
Other-than-temporary impairments recognized during the period	$ 0	$ 0

X

- Definition

Investment Securities Details.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	axp_InvestmentSecuritiesDetailsAbstract
Namespace Prefix:	axp_
Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

X

- Definition

This element represents the amount of loss recognized for other than temporary impairments (OTTI) of investments in debt and equity securities.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 320
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SAB TOPIC 5.M)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=27011274&loc=d3e87990-122713

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_MarketableSecuritiesRealizedGainLossOtherThanTemporaryImpairmentsAmount
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	duration