v3.7.0.1

Deferred Costs (Detail) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Apr. 30, 2017	Apr. 30, 2016	[1]	Jan. 31, 2017
Deferred Costs, Capitalized, Prepaid, and Other Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Deferred sales commissions	$ 166,000			$ 169,000
Amortization of deferred costs	$ 13,637	$ 10,439
[1] See Note 2 for a summary of adjustments.

X

- Definition

The amount of expense recognized in the current period for the periodic realization of capitalized fees that were paid to salespeople, distributors, brokers, and agents at the time of the conclusion of the sale. As a noncash expense, this element is added back to net income when calculating cash provided by or used in operations using the indirect method.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 230
-SubTopic 10
-Section 45
-Paragraph 28
-Subparagraph (b)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=66902209&loc=d3e3602-108585

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 225
-SubTopic 10
-Section S99
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (SX 210.5-03.3)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=63488584&loc=d3e20235-122688

+ Details

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Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	duration

X

- References

No definition available.

+ Details

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Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

X

- Definition

Deferred professional service costs noncurrent.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

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Namespace Prefix:	wday_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant