Fair Values of Assets and Liabilities (Details 3) (Ameriprise Financial, USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2012
Corporate debt securities (private placements)
Summary of the significant unobservable inputs
Fair value	1,567
Corporate debt securities (private placements) | Maximum | Discounted cash flow valuation technique
Summary of the significant unobservable inputs
Yield/spread to U.S. Treasuries (as a percent)	8.50%
Corporate debt securities (private placements) | Minimum | Discounted cash flow valuation technique
Summary of the significant unobservable inputs
Yield/spread to U.S. Treasuries (as a percent)	1.00%
Corporate debt securities (private placements) | Weighted Average | Discounted cash flow valuation technique
Summary of the significant unobservable inputs
Yield/spread to U.S. Treasuries (as a percent)	2.20%
GMWB and GMAB embedded derivatives
Summary of the significant unobservable inputs
Fair value	1,142
GMWB and GMAB embedded derivatives | Discounted cash flow valuation technique
Summary of the significant unobservable inputs
Nonperformance risk (as a percent)	1.00%
GMWB and GMAB embedded derivatives | Maximum | Discounted cash flow valuation technique
Summary of the significant unobservable inputs
Utilization of guaranteed withdrawals (as a percent)	90.00%
Surrender Rate (as a percent)	56.30%
Market volatility (as a percent)	21.70%
GMWB and GMAB embedded derivatives | Minimum | Discounted cash flow valuation technique
Summary of the significant unobservable inputs
Utilization of guaranteed withdrawals (as a percent)	0.00%
Surrender Rate (as a percent)	0.00%
Market volatility (as a percent)	5.60%