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Label

Element

Value

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Registrant Name

dei_EntityRegistrantName

WANGER ADVISORS TRUST

Prospectus Date

rr_ProspectusDate

May 01, 2019

Supplement to Prospectus [Text Block]

rr_SupplementToProspectusTextBlock

WANGER ADVISORS TRUST

Supplement dated May 6, 2019

to the Prospectus dated May 1, 2019

for following Fund (“Fund”):

Wanger Select

Effective immediately, the Fund’s Prospectus is supplemented as follows:

1.	The Annual Fund Operating Expenses table that appears under the section heading “Fees and Expenses of the Fund” is removed and replaced with the following:


Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Management fees					0.80%

Distribution and/or service (12b-1) fees					0.00%

Other expenses^(a)					0.33%

Total annual Fund operating expenses^(b)					1.13%

Fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements^(c)					(0.24)%

Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements					0.89%

^(a)

Other expenses have been restated to reflect current fees paid by the Fund.

^(b)

“Total annual Fund operating expenses” include acquired fund fees and expenses (expenses the Fund incurs indirectly through its investments in other investment companies) and may be higher than the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of this prospectus because the ratio of expenses to average net assets does not include acquired fund fees and expenses.

^(c)

Columbia Wanger Asset Management, LLC (the Investment Manager) has contractually agreed to waive 0.20% of the advisory fee otherwise payable to it by the Fund through April 30, 2020. This arrangement may only be amended or terminated with approval from the Fund’s Board of Trustees and the Investment Manager. The fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements shown in the table also reflect the contractual agreement of the Fund’s transfer agent, Columbia Management Investment Services Corp. (the Transfer Agent), to waive a portion of its fees such that through April 30, 2020 the annual service fee paid by the Fund (Service Fee) does not exceed 0.14% of the Fund’s average daily net assets.

2.	The Example table and the paragraph that immediately precedes it under the section heading “Fees and Expenses of the Fund” are removed and replaced with the following:

Since the waivers and/or reimbursements shown in the Annual Fund Operating Expenses table above expire as indicated in the preceding table, they are only reflected in the 1 year example and the first year of the other examples. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on the assumptions listed above, your costs would be:


				1 year				3 years				5 years				10 years
Wanger Select (whether or not shares are redeemed)				$91				$335				$599				$1,353

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Supplement to Prospectus [Text Block]

rr_SupplementToProspectusTextBlock

WANGER ADVISORS TRUST

Supplement dated May 6, 2019

to the Prospectus dated May 1, 2019

for following Fund (“Fund”):

Wanger Select

Effective immediately, the Fund’s Prospectus is supplemented as follows:

1.	The Annual Fund Operating Expenses table that appears under the section heading “Fees and Expenses of the Fund” is removed and replaced with the following:


Annual Fund Operating Expenses (expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)

Management fees					0.80%

Distribution and/or service (12b-1) fees					0.00%

Other expenses^(a)					0.33%

Total annual Fund operating expenses^(b)					1.13%

Fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements^(c)					(0.24)%

Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements					0.89%

^(a)

Other expenses have been restated to reflect current fees paid by the Fund.

^(b)

“Total annual Fund operating expenses” include acquired fund fees and expenses (expenses the Fund incurs indirectly through its investments in other investment companies) and may be higher than the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of this prospectus because the ratio of expenses to average net assets does not include acquired fund fees and expenses.

^(c)

Columbia Wanger Asset Management, LLC (the Investment Manager) has contractually agreed to waive 0.20% of the advisory fee otherwise payable to it by the Fund through April 30, 2020. This arrangement may only be amended or terminated with approval from the Fund’s Board of Trustees and the Investment Manager. The fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements shown in the table also reflect the contractual agreement of the Fund’s transfer agent, Columbia Management Investment Services Corp. (the Transfer Agent), to waive a portion of its fees such that through April 30, 2020 the annual service fee paid by the Fund (Service Fee) does not exceed 0.14% of the Fund’s average daily net assets.

2.	The Example table and the paragraph that immediately precedes it under the section heading “Fees and Expenses of the Fund” are removed and replaced with the following:

Since the waivers and/or reimbursements shown in the Annual Fund Operating Expenses table above expire as indicated in the preceding table, they are only reflected in the 1 year example and the first year of the other examples. Although your actual costs may be higher or lower, based on the assumptions listed above, your costs would be:


				1 year				3 years				5 years				10 years
Wanger Select (whether or not shares are redeemed)				$91				$335				$599				$1,353

Operating Expenses Caption [Text]

rr_OperatingExpensesCaption

<b>Annual Fund Operating Expenses <br/>(expenses that you pay each year as a percentage of the value of your investment)</b>

Fee Waiver or Reimbursement over Assets, Date of Termination

rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssetsDateOfTermination

April 30, 2020

Expenses Restated to Reflect Current [Text]

rr_ExpensesRestatedToReflectCurrent

Other expenses have been restated to reflect current fees paid by the Fund.

Expenses Not Correlated to Ratio Due to Acquired Fund Fees [Text]

rr_ExpensesNotCorrelatedToRatioDueToAcquiredFundFees

"Total annual Fund operating expenses" include acquired fund fees and expenses (expenses the Fund incurs indirectly through its investments in other investment companies) and may be higher than the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of this prospectus because the ratio of expenses to average net assets does not include acquired fund fees and expenses.

Wanger Select | Wanger Select

Risk/Return:

rr_RiskReturnAbstract

Management fees

rr_ManagementFeesOverAssets

0.80%

Distribution and/or service (12b-1) fees

rr_DistributionAndService12b1FeesOverAssets

none

rr_OtherExpensesOverAssets

0.33%

^[1]

Total annual Fund operating expenses

rr_ExpensesOverAssets

1.13%

^[2]

Fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements

rr_FeeWaiverOrReimbursementOverAssets

(0.24%)

^[3]

Total annual Fund operating expenses after fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements

rr_NetExpensesOverAssets

0.89%

rr_ExpenseExampleYear01

$ 91

rr_ExpenseExampleYear03

335

rr_ExpenseExampleYear05

599

rr_ExpenseExampleYear10

1,353

rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear01

91

rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear03

335

rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear05

599

rr_ExpenseExampleNoRedemptionYear10

$ 1,353

[1]	Other expenses have been restated to reflect current fees paid by the Fund.
[2]	“Total annual Fund operating expenses” include acquired fund fees and expenses (expenses the Fund incurs indirectly through its investments in other investment companies) and may be higher than the ratio of expenses to average net assets shown in the Financial Highlights section of this prospectus because the ratio of expenses to average net assets does not include acquired fund fees and expenses.
[3]	Columbia Wanger Asset Management, LLC (the Investment Manager) has contractually agreed to waive 0.20% of the advisory fee otherwise payable to it by the Fund through April 30, 2020. This arrangement may only be amended or terminated with approval from the Fund’s Board of Trustees and the Investment Manager. The fee waivers and/or expense reimbursements shown in the table also reflect the contractual agreement of the Fund’s transfer agent, Columbia Management Investment Services Corp. (the Transfer Agent), to waive a portion of its fees such that through April 30, 2020 the annual service fee paid by the Fund (Service Fee) does not exceed 0.14% of the Fund’s average daily net assets.