Document and Entity Information - USD ($) $ in Billions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Feb. 05, 2016	Jun. 30, 2015
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Trading Symbol	APC
Entity Registrant Name	ANADARKO PETROLEUM CORP
Entity Central Index Key	0000773910
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2015
Amendment Flag	false
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2015
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		508,438,647
Entity Well Known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Public Float			$ 39.6