Holdback From Sale of Subsidiary

No definition available.

Name:	nkla_HoldbackFromSaleOfSubsidiary
Namespace Prefix:	nkla_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant

- Definition

Holdback From Sale of Subsidiary, Current

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	nkla_HoldbackFromSaleOfSubsidiaryCurrent
Namespace Prefix:	nkla_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant

- Definition

Holdback From Sale of Subsidiary, Noncurrent

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	nkla_HoldbackFromSaleOfSubsidiaryNoncurrent
Namespace Prefix:	nkla_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	instant

- Definition

Increase (Decrease) In Depreciation Expense

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	nkla_IncreaseDecreaseInDepreciationExpense
Namespace Prefix:	nkla_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	duration

- Definition

Increase (Decrease) In Net Loss Per Share

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	nkla_IncreaseDecreaseInNetLossPerShare
Namespace Prefix:	nkla_
Data Type:	dtr-types:perShareItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

- Definition

Percentage of Subsidiary Divested

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	nkla_PercentageOfSubsidiaryDivested
Namespace Prefix:	nkla_
Data Type:	dtr-types:percentItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

- Definition

The amount of expense recognized in the current period that reflects the allocation of the cost of tangible assets over the assets' useful lives. Includes production and non-production related depreciation.

+ References

Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Section 45
-Paragraph 28
-Subparagraph (b)
-SubTopic 10
-Topic 230
-Publisher FASB
-URI https://asc.fasb.org/1943274/2147482740/230-10-45-28

Reference 2: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 360
-SubTopic 10
-Section 50
-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (a)
-Publisher FASB
-URI https://asc.fasb.org/1943274/2147482099/360-10-50-1

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_Depreciation
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	duration

- Definition

The cash inflow associated with the deconsolidation of a previously consolidated subsidiary or the sale of investment in consolidated subsidiaries (generally greater than 50 percent).

+ References

Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Topic 230
-SubTopic 10
-Section 45
-Paragraph 12
-Subparagraph (b)
-Publisher FASB
-URI https://asc.fasb.org/1943274/2147482740/230-10-45-12

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_ProceedsFromDivestitureOfInterestInConsolidatedSubsidiaries
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	debit
Period Type:	duration

- 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

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/disclosureRef
-Topic 842
-SubTopic 20
-Name Accounting Standards Codification
-Section 50
-Paragraph 7A
-Subparagraph (a)
-Publisher FASB
-URI https://asc.fasb.org/1943274/2147478964/842-20-50-7A

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentLineItems
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:stringItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration

- Definition

Useful life of long lived, physical assets used in the normal conduct of business and not intended for resale, in 'PnYnMnDTnHnMnS' format, for example, 'P1Y5M13D' represents the reported fact of one year, five months, and thirteen days. Examples include, but not limited to, land, buildings, machinery and equipment, office equipment, furniture and fixtures, and computer equipment.

+ References

No definition available.

+ Details

Name:	us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentUsefulLife
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:durationItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	instant

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_DisposalGroupClassificationAxis=us-gaap_DisposalGroupDisposedOfBySaleNotDiscontinuedOperationsMember
Namespace Prefix:
Data Type:	na
Balance Type:
Period Type:

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_IncomeStatementBalanceSheetAndAdditionalDisclosuresByDisposalGroupsIncludingDiscontinuedOperationsAxis=nkla_PhoenixHydrogenHubLLCMember
Namespace Prefix:
Data Type:	na
Balance Type:
Period Type:

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_IncomeStatementBalanceSheetAndAdditionalDisclosuresByDisposalGroupsIncludingDiscontinuedOperationsAxis=nkla_PhoenixHydrogenHubProjectMember
Namespace Prefix:
Data Type:	na
Balance Type:
Period Type:

- Details

Name:	us-gaap_PropertyPlantAndEquipmentByTypeAxis=us-gaap_ToolsDiesAndMoldsMember
Namespace Prefix:
Data Type:	na
Balance Type:
Period Type:

BALANCE SHEET COMPONENTS - Narrative (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Millions	1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended			6 Months Ended
	Jul. 31, 2023	Jun. 30, 2024	Mar. 31, 2024	Jun. 30, 2023	Jun. 30, 2024	Jun. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2023
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Depreciation expense		$ 9.3		$ 4.5	$ 18.0	$ 8.8
Disposal Group, Disposed of by Sale, Not Discontinued Operations \| Phoenix Hydrogen Hub, LLC
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Percentage of subsidiary divested	100.00%
Disposal Group, Disposed of by Sale, Not Discontinued Operations \| Phoenix Hydrogen Hub Project
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Net proceeds			$ 25.1
Holdback from sale of subsidiary		3.7			3.7
Holdback from sale of subsidiary, current		2.4			2.4		$ 3.7
Holdback from sale of subsidiary, noncurrent		4.9			4.9
Tooling
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Useful life			5 years
Increase (decrease) in depreciation expense		$ 2.9			$ 5.6
Increase in net loss (in usd per share)		$ 0.06			$ 0.12