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Significant accounting policies - Additional Information (Detail)	3 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2013
Schedule Of Significant Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Maximum number of business days within which ownership of the gold is transferred	3 days
Minimum denomination of shares issued redeemed against gold	100,000

X

- Definition

Maximum number of business days to transfer ownership of gold.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	gld_MaximumNumberOfBusinessDaysToTransferOwnershipOfGold
Namespace Prefix:	gld_
Data Type:	xbrli:durationItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

X

- Definition

The minimum block of shares that can be created or redeemed against gold deposits or distributions.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	gld_MinimumBlockOfSharesIssuedRedeemedAgainstGold
Namespace Prefix:	gld_
Data Type:	xbrli:sharesItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

X

- Details

Name:	gld_ScheduleOfSignificantAccountingPoliciesLineItems
Namespace Prefix:	gld_
Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration