Condensed Consolidated Statements of Earnings - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jul. 02, 2022	Jul. 03, 2021	Jul. 02, 2022	Jul. 03, 2021
Income Statement [Abstract]
Net sales	$ 11,794,474	$ 8,789,164	$ 22,287,756	$ 15,806,304
Costs, expenses and other:
Cost of products sold	7,690,211	6,315,661	14,725,354	11,710,364
Marketing, administrative and other expenses	563,211	387,070	1,087,795	678,194
Equity in earnings of unconsolidated affiliates	(7,113)	(19,403)	(14,808)	(32,642)
Losses on assets		44,308	0	50,970
Interest expense, net	57,763	35,780	100,898	75,424
Costs, expenses and other, total	8,304,072	6,763,416	15,899,239	12,482,310
Earnings before income taxes and noncontrolling interests	3,490,402	2,025,748	6,388,517	3,323,994
Provision for income taxes	763,165	454,289	1,434,165	765,021
Net earnings	2,727,237	1,571,459	4,954,352	2,558,973
Earnings attributable to noncontrolling interests	166,004	64,591	297,496	109,673
Net earnings attributable to Nucor stockholders	$ 2,561,233	$ 1,506,868	$ 4,656,856	$ 2,449,300
Net earnings per share:
Basic	$ 9.69	$ 5.05	$ 17.34	$ 8.14
Diluted	$ 9.67	$ 5.04	$ 17.30	$ 8.13
Average shares outstanding:
Basic	263,221	296,817	267,416	299,359
Diluted	263,719	297,529	268,066	299,738