Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Implementation of New Financial Accounting Standard	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2021
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Implementation of New Financial Accounting Standard	Summary of Significant Accounting Policies and Implementation of New Financial Accounting Standard Basis of Presentation The accompanying consolidated financial statements include Eli Lilly and Company and all subsidiaries and have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (GAAP). We consider majority voting interests, as well as effective economic or other control over an entity when deciding whether or not to consolidate an entity. We generally do not have control by means other than voting interests. Where our ownership of consolidated subsidiaries is less than 100 percent, the noncontrolling shareholders' interests are reflected as a separate component of equity. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated. The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, expenses, and related disclosures at the date of the financial statements and during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. We issued our financial statements by filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and have evaluated subsequent events up to the time of the filing of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Certain reclassifications have been made to prior periods in the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes to conform with the current presentation. All per-share amounts, unless otherwise noted in the footnotes, are presented on a diluted basis. On March 11, 2019, we completed the disposition of our remaining 80.2 percent ownership of Elanco Animal Health Incorporated (Elanco) common stock through a tax-free exchange offer. As a result, Elanco has been presented as discontinued operations in our consolidated financial statements for all periods presented. We operate as a single operating segment engaged in the discovery, development, manufacturing, marketing, and sales of pharmaceutical products worldwide. A global research and development organization and a supply chain organization are responsible for the discovery, development, manufacturing, and supply of our products. Regional commercial organizations market, distribute, and sell the products. The business is also supported by global corporate staff functions. Our determination that we operate as a single segment is consistent with the financial information regularly reviewed by the chief operating decision maker for purposes of evaluating performance, allocating resources, setting incentive compensation targets, and planning and forecasting for future periods. Research and Development Expenses and Acquired In-Process Research and Development (IPR&D) Research and development expenses include the following: •Research and development costs, which are expensed as incurred. •Milestone payment obligations incurred prior to regulatory approval of the product, which are accrued when the event requiring payment of the milestone occurs. Acquired IPR&D expense includes the initial costs of externally developed IPR&D projects, acquired directly in a transaction other than a business combination, that do not have an alternative future use. Earnings Per Share (EPS) We calculate basic EPS based on the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding plus the effect of incremental shares from potential participating securities. We calculate diluted EPS based on the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding plus the effect of incremental shares from our stock-based compensation programs. Foreign Currency Translation Operations in our subsidiaries outside the United States (U.S.) are recorded in the functional currency of each subsidiary which is determined by a review of the environment where each subsidiary primarily generates and expends cash. The results of operations for our subsidiaries outside the U.S. are translated from functional currencies into U.S. dollars using the weighted average currency rate for the period. Assets and liabilities are translated using the period end exchange rates. The U.S. dollar effects that arise from translating the net assets of these subsidiaries are recorded in other comprehensive income (loss). Advertising Expenses Costs associated with advertising are expensed as incurred and are included in marketing, selling, and administrative expenses. Advertising expenses, comprised primarily of television, radio, print media, and Internet advertising, totaled approximately $1.2 billion, $1.1 billion, and $1.1 billion in 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively, which was less than 5 percent of revenue each year. Other Significant Accounting Policies Our other significant accounting policies are described in the remaining appropriate notes to the consolidated financial statements. Implementation of New Financial Accounting Standard Accounting Standards Update 2021-01, Reference Rate Reform, provides for temporary optional expedients and exceptions in applying current GAAP to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions affected by the transition from the use of the London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) to an alternative reference rate. The standard can be adopted immediately and is applicable to contracts entered into before January 1, 2023. We do not expect the transition from the use of LIBOR to an alternative reference rate to have a material impact to our consolidated statements of operations or balance sheets at the initial transition.