Document and Entity Information - shares	6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2017	Jul. 31, 2017
Document and Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Jun. 30, 2017
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2017
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q2
Entity Registrant Name	ENERGEN CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000277595
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding (shares)		97,197,175