Document and Entity Information - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Feb. 05, 2016	Jun. 30, 2015
Document Information [Line Items]
Entity Registrant Name	COUSINS PROPERTIES INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000025232
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2015
Amendment Flag	false
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2015	2014	2013
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q4
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Public Float					$ 2,128,680,591
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding				211,441,397