Employee compensation - Performance share awards assumptions used to estimate the fair value (Details) - Performance unit awards - $ / shares					12 Months Ended
Feb. 17, 2017	May 25, 2016	Apr. 01, 2016	Feb. 27, 2015	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Risk-free interest rate (as a percent)	1.44%	1.02%	0.87%	0.95%
Dividend yield (as a percent)	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
Expected volatility (as a percent)	74.00%	74.73%	71.54%	53.78%
Laredo stock closing price as of the grant date (in dollars per share)	$ 14.12	$ 12.36	$ 7.71	$ 11.93
Fair value per performance share (in dollars per share)	$ 18.96	$ 17.86	$ 9.83	$ 16.23	$ 18.96	$ 17.71	$ 16.23

The weighted average fair value at grant date for nonvested equity-based awards issued during the period on other than stock (or unit) option plans (for example, phantom stock or unit plan, stock or unit appreciation rights plan, performance target plan).

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 718
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (c)(2)(iii)(1)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=96867065&loc=d3e5070-113901

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- Definition

The estimated dividend rate (a percentage of the share price) to be paid (expected dividends) to holders of the underlying shares over the option's term.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 718
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (f)(2)(iii)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=96867065&loc=d3e5070-113901

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- Definition

The estimated measure of the percentage by which a share price is expected to fluctuate during a period. Volatility also may be defined as a probability-weighted measure of the dispersion of returns about the mean. The volatility of a share price is the standard deviation of the continuously compounded rates of return on the share over a specified period. That is the same as the standard deviation of the differences in the natural logarithms of the stock prices plus dividends, if any, over the period.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 718
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (f)(2)(ii)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=96867065&loc=d3e5070-113901

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- Definition

The risk-free interest rate assumption that is used in valuing an option on its own shares.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
-Publisher FASB
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 718
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 2
-Subparagraph (f)(2)(iv)
-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=96867065&loc=d3e5070-113901

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- Definition

Line items represent financial concepts included in a table. These concepts are used to disclose reportable information associated with domain members defined in one or many axes to the table.

+ References

No definition available.

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- Definition

Price of a single share of a number of saleable stocks of a company.

+ References

No definition available.

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