Document and Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Feb. 02, 2013	Mar. 06, 2013	Jul. 28, 2012
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	false
Document Period End Date	Feb. 02, 2013
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Trading Symbol	AEO
Entity Registrant Name	AMERICAN EAGLE OUTFITTERS INC
Entity Central Index Key	0000919012
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--02-02
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		194,100,506
Entity Public Float			$ 3,761,633,735