Debt of the Operating Partnership (Outstanding Indebtedness - Unsecured Term Loan) (Details) $ in Thousands	Sep. 30, 2015 USD ($) $ / £ $ / SGD $ / € $ / AUD	Dec. 31, 2014 USD ($) $ / £ $ / SGD $ / € $ / AUD
SGD
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Exchange rate | $ / SGD	0.70	0.75
Unsecured term loan
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Balance as of September 30, 2015	$ 938,276	$ 976,600
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | GBP
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Exchange rate | $ / £	1.51	1.56
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | EUR
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Exchange rate | $ / €	1.12	1.21
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | AUD
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Exchange rate | $ / AUD	0.70	0.82
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | Unsecured term loan
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Balance as of September 30, 2015	$ 938,276	$ 976,600
Weighted-average interest rate	1.72%	1.66%
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | Unsecured term loan | Interest Rate Swap
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Weighted-average interest rate	1.94%	2.00%
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | Unsecured term loan | USD
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Balance as of September 30, 2015	$ 410,905	$ 410,905
Weighted-average interest rate	1.40%	1.36%
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | Unsecured term loan | USD | Interest Rate Swap
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Weighted-average interest rate	1.88%	1.92%
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | Unsecured term loan | SGD
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Balance as of September 30, 2015	$ 160,659	$ 172,426
Weighted-average interest rate	2.08%	1.45%
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | Unsecured term loan | SGD | Interest Rate Swap
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Weighted-average interest rate	2.16%	2.01%
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | Unsecured term loan | GBP
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Balance as of September 30, 2015	$ 182,935	$ 188,365
Weighted-average interest rate	1.78%	1.76%
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | Unsecured term loan | EUR
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Balance as of September 30, 2015	$ 111,211	$ 120,375
Weighted-average interest rate	1.20%	1.22%
Digital Realty Trust, L.P. | Unsecured term loan | AUD
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Balance as of September 30, 2015	$ 72,566	$ 84,529
Weighted-average interest rate	3.34%	3.98%