Earnings Per Share (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 28, 2014	Jun. 29, 2013	Jun. 28, 2014	Jun. 29, 2013
Numerators:
Numerator for both basic and diluted EPS attributable to HNI Corporation net income	$ 9,705	$ 11,421	$ 20,801	$ 12,829
Denominators:
Denominator for basic EPS weighted-average common shares outstanding	45,019,783	45,412,668	45,029,148	45,283,716
Potentially dilutive shares from stock-based compensation plans	848,000	697,000	813,000	608,000
Denominator for diluted EPS	45,867,927	46,109,563	45,843,118	45,891,246
Earnings per share - basic	$ 0.22	$ 0.25	$ 0.46	$ 0.28
Earnings per share - diluted	$ 0.21	$ 0.25	$ 0.45	$ 0.28
Earnings Per Share, Diluted, Other Disclosures [Abstract]
Antidilutive securities excluded from computation of earnings per share	945,338	880,657	999,423	1,303,625