Long-Term Debt Additional Information (Details) (USD $)			0 Months Ended		3 Months Ended	6 Months Ended	0 Months Ended			0 Months Ended		6 Months Ended	0 Months Ended		6 Months Ended		0 Months Ended		3 Months Ended			6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	May 15, 2016 3.25% Convertible Senior Notes due 2016	Nov. 15, 2010 3.25% Convertible Senior Notes due 2016	Jun. 30, 2014 3.25% Convertible Senior Notes due 2016 Rate	Jun. 30, 2014 3.25% Convertible Senior Notes due 2016 Rate	Oct. 15, 2022 7.75% Senior Notes due 2022	Oct. 03, 2012 7.75% Senior Notes due 2022	Jun. 30, 2014 7.75% Senior Notes due 2022 Rate	May 21, 2018 Revolving Credit Facility	Nov. 05, 2010 Revolving Credit Facility	Jun. 30, 2014 Revolving Credit Facility	Apr. 30, 2017 PDCM Credit Facility	Apr. 30, 2010 PDCM Credit Facility	Jun. 30, 2014 PDCM Credit Facility Rate	Dec. 31, 2013 PDCM Credit Facility Rate	Oct. 31, 2017 PDCM Second Lien Term Loan	Jul. 02, 2013 PDCM Second Lien Term Loan	Jun. 30, 2014 PDCM Second Lien Term Loan Rate	Dec. 31, 2013 PDCM Second Lien Term Loan Rate	Jun. 30, 2014 RNG Credit Facility [Member]	Jun. 30, 2014 First Payment 3.25% Convertible Senior Notes due 2016	Jun. 30, 2014 First Payment 7.75% Senior Notes due 2022	Jun. 30, 2014 Second Payment 3.25% Convertible Senior Notes due 2016	Jun. 30, 2014 Second Payment 7.75% Senior Notes due 2022	Jun. 30, 2014 Alternate Base Rate PDCM Second Lien Term Loan	Jun. 30, 2014 LIBOR PDCM Second Lien Term Loan
Debt Instrument
Debt Instrument, Interest Rate, Stated Percentage					3.25%	3.25%			7.75%
Debt Instrument, Issuance Date				Nov. 15, 2010				Oct. 03, 2012										Jul. 02, 2013
Debt Instrument, Maturity Date			May 15, 2016				Oct. 15, 2022										Oct. 31, 2017
Debt Instrument, Frequency of Periodic Payment																						May 15	April 15	November 15	October 15
3.25% Convertible Debt, Liability Component ($)				$ 94,300,000
Effective Interest Rate on Convertible Debt						7.40%
Debt Instrument, Convertible, Terms of Conversion Feature						Upon conversion, the Convertible Notes may be settled, at our election, in shares of our common stock, cash or a combination of cash and shares of our common stock. We have initially elected a net-settlement method to satisfy our conversion obligation, which allows us to settle the principal amount of the Convertible Notes in cash and to settle the excess conversion value in shares, as well as cash in lieu of fractional shares.
Convertible Note Stock Price Trigger						$ 55.12
Convertible Note Threshold Percentage of Stock Price Trigger						130.00%
PDC Energy Stock Price					$ 63.15	$ 63.15
Convertible Note, If-converted Value in Excess of Principal					56,300,000
Line of Credit Facility, Initiation Date											Nov. 05, 2010			Apr. 30, 2010
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity ($)												1,000,000,000			400,000,000				75,000,000
Line of Credit Facility, Current Borrowing Capacity ($)												450,000,000			105,000,000
Line of Credit Facility, Expiration Date										May 21, 2018			Apr. 30, 2017
Debt Instrument, Covenant Description												The revolving credit facility contains covenants customary for agreements of this type, with the most restrictive being certain financial tests on a quarterly basis. The financial tests, as defined per the revolving credit facility, include requirements to: (a) maintain a minimum current ratio of 1.00 to 1.00 and (b) not exceed a maximum leverage ratio of 4.25 to 1.00.			The credit facility contains covenants customary for agreements of this type, with the most restrictive being certain financial tests that must be met on a quarterly basis. The financial tests, as defined by the credit facility, include requirements to maintain a minimum current ratio of 1.0 to 1.0, not to exceed a debt to EBITDAX ratio of 4.25 to 1.0 (declining to 4.0 to 1.0 on July 1, 2014) and to maintain a minimum interest coverage ratio of 2.5 to 1.0				The Term Loan Agreement contains financial covenants, as defined in the agreement, that must be met on a quarterly basis, including requirements to maintain a minimum current ratio of 1.0 to 1.0, not to exceed a debt to EBITDAX ratio of 4.5 to 1.0, a minimum interest coverage ratio of 2.25 to 1.0 and a present value of future net revenues to total debt ratio of 1.50 to 1.00.
PDC Irrevocable Standby Letter of Credit ($)																					11,700,000
Line of Credit Facility, Remaining Borrowing Capacity												438,300,000
Weighted Average Interest Rate															3.80%	3.70%			8.50%	8.50%
Proportionate Share of PDCM Credit Facility ($)															53,000,000
PDCM second lien term loan	$ 15,000,000	$ 15,000,000																	$ 30,000,000
Margin on Variable Interest Rate																										7.00%	6.00%