Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	3 Months Ended
Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	Apr. 30, 2020
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Basis of Accounting, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Basis of Presentation In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements fairly present the financial information contained therein. These statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (GAAP) for interim financial information and with the instructions to Form 10 -Q and Article 10 of Regulation S- X. The financial statements and footnotes are unaudited. In management’s opinion, all necessary adjustments, consisting of normal, recurring and non-recurring adjustments, have been included in the accompanying Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements to present fairly the financial position and operating results of QAD Inc. (QAD or the Company). The Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements do not include all disclosures required by GAAP annual financial statements and should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements and related notes included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10 -K for the year ended January 31, 2020. The Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements include the results of the Company and its wholly owned subsidiaries. Because of seasonal and other factors, results of operations for the three months ended April 30, 2020 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the year ending January 31, 2021. The Company’s accounting policies are set forth in detail in Note 1 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10 -K for the year ended January 31, 2020 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such Annual Report also contains a discussion of the Company’s critical accounting policies and estimates. The Company believes that these accounting policies and estimates affect its more significant estimates and judgments used in the preparation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements. There have been no material changes to the Company’s accounting policies except as described below upon adoption of ASU 2016 - 13, Financial Instruments-Credit Losses.
New Accounting Pronouncements, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Recent Accounting Pronouncements Except as discussed below, there have been no recent changes in accounting pronouncements issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) or adopted by the Company during the three months ended April 30, 2020, that are of significance, or potential significance, to the Company. Recent Accounting Pronouncements Adopted In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017 - 04, Simplifying the Test for Goodwill Impairment , that eliminates “Step 2” from the goodwill impairment test. QAD adopted the new standard on February 1, 2020, the first day of fiscal 2021. The new standard did not have an impact on the Company’s condensed consolidated financial statements. In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016 - 13, Financial Instruments-Credit Losses (Topic 326 ): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments , which requires the measurement and recognition of expected credit losses for financial assets held at amortized cost, which includes the Company's accounts receivables and contract assets. QAD adopted the new standard on February 1, 2020, the first day of fiscal 2021, using the modified retrospective approach. The adoption of this standard did not have a material impact on QAD’s condensed consolidated financial statements. The Company’s expected loss allowance methodology for accounts receivable is developed using historical collection experience, consideration of current and anticipated future economic conditions and other relevant data. In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018 - 15, Intangibles-Goodwill and Other-Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350 - 40 ): Customer’s Accounting for Implementation Costs Incurred in a Cloud Computing Arrangement That Is a Service Contract , which aligns the accounting for implementation costs incurred in a hosting arrangement that is a service contract with the accounting for implementation costs incurred to develop or obtain internal-use software under ASC 350 - 40, in order to determine which costs to capitalize and recognize as an asset and which costs to expense. The Company adopted the new standard on February 1, 2020, the first day of fiscal 2021. The adoption of this standard did not have a material impact on QAD’s condensed consolidated financial statements. Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted In December 2019, the FASB issued new guidance which is intended to simplify various aspects to accounting for income taxes by removing certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740 for recognizing deferred taxes for investments, performing an intraperiod allocation and calculating income taxes in interim periods. The amendment also clarifies and amends certain areas of existing guidance to reduce complexity and improve consistency in application of Topic 740. The new standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020. Early adoption is permitted, including adoption in any interim period for which financial statements have not yet been issued. Generally, the topics must be applied prospectively upon adoption, with the exception of certain topics which are required to be applied on a retrospective or modified retrospective basis. The Company is evaluating the impact, if any, of adopting this new accounting guidance on its financial statements.