Significant Accounting Policies - Foreign Currency Translation (Details) $ in Millions, $ in Millions, in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2018 VEF ( ) item	Dec. 31, 2018 ARS ($) Bs. / $ $ / $	Dec. 31, 2018 USD ($) Bs. / $ $ / $
Venezuela
Foreign Currency Translation
Accumulated other comprehensive loss that 3M Company has recorded from its Venezuelan subsidiary			$ 145
Denominator used to determine conversion from Venezuelan Bolivar to Sovereign Bolivar. | item	100,000
Balance of the Company's overall net monetary liabilities valued functional currency |	30
Foreign currency exchange rate | Bs. / $		556	556
Argentina
Foreign Currency Translation
Threshold percentage used to determine if economic environment is highly inflationary	100.00%
Number of years used to determine if economic environment is highly inflationary	3 years
Balance of the Company's overall net monetary assets valued functional currency		$ 230
Foreign currency exchange rate | $ / $		38	38
Maximum | Argentina
Foreign Currency Translation
Operating income of subsidiaries as percent of consolidated amount high end of range	0.50%