SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Policies)	6 Months Ended
SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Policies)	Jun. 30, 2024
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	Basis of Presentation In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (“Financial Statements”) of Intuitive Surgical, Inc. and its wholly and majority-owned subsidiaries have been prepared on a consistent basis with the audited Consolidated Financial Statements for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, and include all adjustments, consisting of only normal, recurring adjustments, necessary to fairly state the information set forth herein. The Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and, therefore, omit certain information and footnote disclosures necessary to present the Financial Statements in accordance with United States (“U.S.”) generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”). These Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the audited Consolidated Financial Statements and notes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, which was filed with the SEC on January 31, 2024. The results of operations for the first six months of 2024 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the entire fiscal year or any future periods.
Consolidation and Joint Ventures	The Financial Statements include the results and balances of the Company’s majority-owned joint ventures, Intuitive Surgical-Fosun Medical Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. and Intuitive Surgical-Fosun (HongKong) Co., Ltd. (collectively, the “Joint Venture”), with Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical (Group) Co., Ltd. (“Fosun Pharma”). The Company holds a controlling financial interest in the Joint Venture, and the noncontrolling interest is reflected as a separate component of the consolidated stockholders’ equity. The noncontrolling interest’s share of the earnings in the Joint Venture is presented separately in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income.
Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements and Significant Accounting Policies	Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements In November 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standard Update (“ASU”) 2023-07, Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures (“ASU 2023-07”), which requires all public entities, including public entities with a single reportable segment, to provide in interim and annual periods one or more measures of segment profit or loss used by the chief operating decision maker to allocate resources and assess performance. Additionally, the standard requires disclosures of significant segment expenses and other segment items as well as incremental qualitative disclosures. The guidance in this update is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, and interim periods after December 15, 2024. The Company is currently in the process of evaluating the effects of this pronouncement on its related disclosures. In December 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-09, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures (“ASU 2023-09”), which requires enhanced income tax disclosures, including specific categories and disaggregation of information in the effective tax rate reconciliation, disaggregated information related to income taxes paid, income or loss from continuing operations before income tax expense or benefit, and income tax expense or benefit from continuing operations. The requirements of the ASU are effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2024, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently in the process of evaluating the impact of this pronouncement on its related disclosures. The Company continues to monitor new accounting pronouncements issued by the FASB and does not believe any accounting pronouncements issued through the date of this report will have a material impact on the Company’s Financial Statements. Significant Accounting Policies There have been no new or material changes to the significant accounting policies discussed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, that are of significance, or potential significance, to the Company.