Document and Entity Information Document	3 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2012	Jul. 19, 2012
Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Registrant Name	CORE LABORATORIES N V
Entity Central Index Key	0001000229
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Mar. 31, 2012
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q2
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		47,306,751