Document and Entity Information - shares	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2018	Apr. 27, 2018
Document and Entity Information [Abstract]
Entity Registrant Name	W. P. Carey Inc.
Entity Central Index Key	0001025378
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Mar. 31, 2018
Amendment Flag	false
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2018
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q1
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		107,194,767