Document And Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2012	Nov. 28, 2012	Mar. 31, 2012
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Entity Registrant Name	LANDAUER INC
Trading Symbol	ldr
Entity Central Index Key	0000825410
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--09-30
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Filer Category	Accelerated Filer
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Public Float			$ 496,000,000
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		9,456,355