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Document and Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
Document and Entity Information (USD $)	Aug. 27, 2011	Feb. 26, 2011	Oct. 21, 2011 Class A Common Stock [Member]	Oct. 21, 2011 Class B Common Stock [Member]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Aug. 27, 2011
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2011
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Entity Registrant Name	MSC INDUSTRIAL DIRECT CO INC
Entity Central Index Key	0001003078
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--08-27
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding			46,356,310	16,400,474
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Public Float		$ 2,880,787,103
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No