Document and Entity Information - shares	9 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2018	Aug. 02, 2018
Document and Entity Information [Abstract]
Entity Registrant Name	MTS SYSTEMS CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000068709
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--09-29
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Jun. 30, 2018
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2018
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding (in shares)		17,860,052