Document And Entity Information	9 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2012	Jul. 31, 2012
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-Q
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Jun. 30, 2012
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Entity Registrant Name	NATIONAL FUEL GAS CO
Entity Central Index Key	0000070145
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--09-30
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		83,306,912
Trading Symbol	nfg