Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited) (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2020	Sep. 30, 2020	Jun. 30, 2020	Mar. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Sep. 30, 2019	Jun. 30, 2019	Mar. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2020	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited)
Revenues	$ 4,557,365	$ 4,531,591	$ 3,187,090	$ 3,217,389	$ 3,240,865	$ 3,168,363	$ 3,211,312	$ 3,187,144	$ 15,493,435	$ 12,807,684	$ 13,621,302
Operating income (loss)	989,639	811,248	637,650	144,078	522,952	468,892	430,732	456,300	2,582,615	1,878,876	2,147,621
Net income (loss)	761,297	532,959	480,406	99,274	413,547	377,157	340,566	361,299	1,873,936	1,492,569	1,655,491
Net income (loss) attributable to DISH Network	$ 732,632	$ 504,599	$ 452,343	$ 73,099	$ 389,404	$ 353,304	$ 317,043	$ 339,761	$ 1,762,673	$ 1,399,512	$ 1,575,091
Basic net income (loss) per share attributable to DISH Network (in dollars per share)	$ 1.39	$ 0.96	$ 0.86	$ 0.14	$ 0.77	$ 0.74	$ 0.68	$ 0.73	$ 3.36	$ 2.92	$ 3.37
Diluted net income (loss) per share attributable to DISH Network (in dollars per share)	$ 1.24	$ 0.86	$ 0.78	$ 0.13	$ 0.69	$ 0.66	$ 0.60	$ 0.65	$ 3.02	$ 2.60	$ 3.00