Document And Entity Information (USD $) In Millions, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Feb. 19, 2015	Jun. 30, 2014
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2014
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2014
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Entity Registrant Name	WERNER ENTERPRISES INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000793074
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		72,087,926
Entity Public Float			$ 1,197
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Trading Symbol	wern