v3.20.2

Property and Equipment - Satellite Fleet (Details) | 9 Months Ended
--- | ---
Sep. 30, 2020
SPACEWAY 3 |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Depreciable Life (In Years) | 10 years
EchoStar XVII |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Depreciable Life (In Years) | 15 years
EchoStar XIX |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Depreciable Life (In Years) | 15 years
Al Yah 3 |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Depreciable Life (In Years) | 7 years
EchoStar IX |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Depreciable Life (In Years) | 12 years
EchoStar XXI |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Depreciable Life (In Years) | 15 years
Eutelsat 65 West A |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Depreciable Life (In Years) | 15 years
Telesat T19V |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Depreciable Life (In Years) | 15 years
EchoStar 105/SES-11 |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Depreciable Life (In Years) | 15 years

X
- Definition Line items represent financial concepts included in a table. These concepts are used to disclose reportable information associated with domain members defined in one or many axes to the table. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentLineItems
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Definition Useful life of long lived, physical assets used in the normal conduct of business and not intended for resale, in 'PnYnMnDTnHnMnS' format, for example, 'P1Y5M13D' represents the reported fact of one year, five months, and thirteen days. Examples include, but not limited to, land, buildings, machinery and equipment, office equipment, furniture and fixtures, and computer equipment. + References No definition available. + Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentUsefulLife
Namespace Prefix: | us-gaap_
Data Type: | xbrli:durationItemType
Balance Type: | na
Period Type: | duration

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=sats_SPACEWAY3Member
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=sats_EchoStarXVIIMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=sats_EchoStarXIXMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=sats_AlYah3Member
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=sats_EchoStarIXMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=sats_EchoStarXXIMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=sats_Eutelsat65WestAMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=sats_Telesat19VMember
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |

X
- Details
Name: | us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=sats_EchoStar105SES11Member
Namespace Prefix: |
Data Type: | na
Balance Type: |
Period Type: |