Document And Entity Information - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Nov. 30, 2015	Jan. 19, 2016	May. 29, 2015
Entity Registrant Name	ARTS WAY MANUFACTURING CO INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000007623
Trading Symbol	artw
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--11-30
Entity Filer Category	Smaller Reporting Company
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding (in shares)		4,061,052
Entity Public Float			$ 11,158,555
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Nov. 30, 2015
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2015
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Amendment Flag	false