Long-Term Debt and Liquidity Matters (Details) (USD $)																12 Months Ended				12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2013 Maximum	Dec. 31, 2013 Pinnacle West	Dec. 31, 2012 Pinnacle West	Dec. 31, 2013 APS	Dec. 31, 2012 APS	Dec. 31, 2013 APS ACC	Dec. 31, 2013 APS ACC Minimum	Dec. 31, 2013 Pollution Control Bonds - Variable APS	Dec. 31, 2012 Pollution Control Bonds - Variable APS	Dec. 31, 2013 Pollution Control Bonds - Variable APS Maximum	Dec. 31, 2012 Pollution Control Bonds - Variable APS Maximum	Dec. 31, 2013 Pollution Control Bonds - Variable APS Minimum	Dec. 31, 2012 Pollution Control Bonds - Variable APS Minimum	Dec. 31, 2013 Pollution Control Bonds - Fixed APS	Dec. 31, 2012 Pollution Control Bonds - Fixed APS	Dec. 31, 2013 Total Pollution Control Bonds APS	Dec. 31, 2012 Total Pollution Control Bonds APS	Dec. 31, 2013 Senior unsecured notes APS	Dec. 31, 2012 Senior unsecured notes APS	Dec. 31, 2013 Palo Verde sale leaseback lessor notes APS	Dec. 31, 2012 Palo Verde sale leaseback lessor notes APS	Dec. 31, 2013 Term loan facility Pinnacle West	Dec. 31, 2012 Term loan facility Pinnacle West	Mar. 22, 2013 4.50% unsecured senior notes that mature on April 1, 2042 APS	May 01, 2013 Pollution Control Revenue Refunding Bonds, 2009 Series C APS	Jul. 12, 2013 Pollution Control Revenue Refunding Bonds, 1994 Series A APS	Oct. 11, 2013 Pollution Control Revenue Refunding Bonds, 1994 Series C APS Subsequent event
Long-Term Debt and Liquidity Matters
Long-term debt redemption				$ 3,340,000,000		$ 3,215,000,000				$ 75,580,000	$ 75,580,000					$ 426,125,000	$ 490,275,000	$ 501,705,000	$ 565,855,000	$ 2,675,000,000	$ 2,575,000,000						$ 32,000,000	$ 33,000,000	$ 32,000,000
Palo Verde sale leaseback lessor notes long-term debt excluding current maturities	13,420,000	38,869,000				13,420,000	38,869,000															38,869,000	65,547,000
Unamortized discount						(8,732,000)	(9,486,000)
Unamortized premium						5,047,000
Long-term debt	3,337,000,000	3,322,000,000																						125,000,000	125,000,000
Long-term debt				125,000,000	125,000,000	3,211,889,000	3,196,916,000
Less current maturities						(540,424,000)	(122,828,000)			(215,000,000)										(300,000,000)
Total long-term debt less current maturities						2,671,465,000	3,074,088,000
Interest rate (as a percent)																						8.00%				4.50%	1.75%
Long-term debt less current maturities	2,796,465,000	3,199,088,000		125,000,000	125,000,000
Interest Rates, low end of range (as a percent)																1.25%	1.25%			4.50%	4.50%
Interest Rates, high end of range (as a percent)																6.00%	6.00%			8.75%	8.75%
Weighted-average interest rate (as a percent)												0.06%	0.15%	0.03%	0.13%									1.269%	1.312%
Estimated fair value of long-term debt, including current maturities
Carrying Amount				125,000,000	125,000,000	3,211,889,000	3,196,916,000
Long-term debt	3,337,000,000	3,322,000,000																						125,000,000	125,000,000
Fair Value	3,579,000,000	3,875,000,000		125,000,000	125,000,000	3,454,000,000	3,750,000,000
Notes issued																										100,000,000
Debt Provisions
Actual ratio of consolidated debt to total consolidated capitalization required to be maintained as per the debt covenant (as a percent)				47.00%		45.00%
Ratio of consolidated debt to consolidated capitalization (as a percent)			65.00%
Required common equity ratio ordered by ACC (as a percent)									40.00%
Total shareholder equity	4,194,470,000	3,972,806,000		4,194,470,000	3,972,806,000	4,308,884,000	4,093,000,000	4,300,000,000
Total capitalization								7,500,000,000
Dividend restrictions, shareholder equity required								$ 3,000,000,000