Earnings per Share (Details) (USD $) In Millions, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Oct. 01, 2011	Oct. 02, 2010	Oct. 01, 2011	Oct. 02, 2010
Earnings for basic and diluted earnings per share:
Net income (loss)	$ 7	$ 126	$ 41	$ 141
Less: Distributed and undistributed amounts allocated to participating securities	0	(1)	0	(1)
Distributed and undistributed income available to Temple-Inland common shareholders	7	125	41	140
Less: Net (income) loss attributable to noncontrolling interest of special purpose entities	(1)	(1)	0	0
Net income (loss) available to common shareholders	$ 6	$ 124	$ 41	$ 140
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Weighted average shares outstanding - basic (in shares)	109,300,000	107,900,000	108,700,000	107,800,000
Dilutive effect of stock options and unvested stock-settled restricted stock units (in shares)	2,400,000	1,500,000	2,200,000	1,700,000
Weighted average shares outstanding - diluted (in shares)	111,700,000	109,400,000	110,900,000	109,500,000
Options held by employees of spun-off entities [Abstract]
Options held	174,000	451,000	174,000	451,000
Options exercisable	174,000	436,000	174,000	436,000
Weighted average exercise price (in dollars per share)	$ 20	$ 19	$ 20	$ 19
Weighted average remaining contractual term (in years)	4	5	4	5
Stock Options [Member]
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Anti-dilutive securities excluded from computation of earnings per share (in shares)	0	3,628,000	0	1,352,000
Stock Options Held By Employees of Spun-Off Entities [Member]
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Anti-dilutive securities excluded from computation of earnings per share (in shares)	0	279,000	0	279,000