Document and Entity Information - USD ($)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Feb. 09, 2016	Jun. 30, 2015
Document and Entity Information [Abstract]
Entity Registrant Name	BADGER METER INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000009092
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2015
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2015
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		14,522,255
Yes	Yes
No	No
Yes	Yes
Entity Public Float			$ 780,451,732