v3.26.1
Shareholder Report
 6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2026
USD ($)
Holding
Shareholder Report [Line Items]  
Document Type N-CSRS
Amendment Flag false
Registrant Name COLUMBIA FUNDS VARIABLE SERIES TRUST
Entity Central Index Key 0000929521
Entity Investment Company Type N-1A
Document Period End Date Jun. 30, 2026
Shareholder Report Annual or Semi-Annual Semi-Annual Shareholder Report
C000024403  
Shareholder Report [Line Items]  
Fund Name Columbia Variable Portfolio – Acorn Fund
Trading Symbol WUSAX
Annual or Semi-Annual Statement [Text Block] This semi-annual shareholder report contains important information about Columbia Variable Portfolio – Acorn Fund (the Fund) for the period of January 1, 2026 to June 30, 2026.
Additional Information [Text Block] You can find additional information about the Fund at columbiathreadneedleus.com/resources/literature. You can also request more information by contacting us at 1-800-345-6611.
Additional Information Phone Number 1-800-345-6611
Additional Information Website columbiathreadneedleus.com/resources/literature
Expenses [Text Block]

What were the Fund costs for the reporting period? 

(Based on a hypothetical $10,000 investment)

Table Summary
Fund
Cost of a $10,000 investment
Cost paid as a percentage of a $10,000 investment
Columbia Variable Portfolio – Acorn Fund
$49
0.89%Footnote Reference(a)
Footnote Description
Footnote(a)
 Annualized
Expenses Paid, Amount $ 49
Expense Ratio, Percent 0.89% [1]
AssetsNet $ 536,156,698
Holdings Count | Holding 95
InvestmentCompanyPortfolioTurnover 53.00%
Additional Fund Statistics [Text Block]

Key Fund Statistics

Table Summary
Fund net assets
$536,156,698
Total number of portfolio holdings
95
Portfolio turnover for the reporting period
53%
Holdings [Text Block]

Equity Sector Allocation

Table Summary
Industrials
27.4%
Information Technology
23.9%
Health Care
21.4%
Consumer Discretionary
7.2%
Financials
7.0%
Energy
2.4%
Consumer Staples
2.3%
Communication Services
1.0%
Utilities
0.5%

Asset Categories

Table Summary
Common Stocks
93.1%
Money Market Funds
5.7%
Exchange-Traded Equity Funds
1.4%
Largest Holdings [Text Block]

Top Holdings 

Table Summary
SPX Technologies, Inc.
2.8%
VSE Corp.
2.1%
GCM Grosvenor, Inc., Class A
2.0%
SharkNinja, Inc.
1.9%
Cavco Industries, Inc.
1.8%
DigitalOcean Holdings, Inc.
1.8%
Guardant Health, Inc.
1.8%
Rush Street Interactive, Inc.
1.8%
Viavi Solutions, Inc.
1.7%
InterDigital, Inc.
1.7%
Material Fund Change [Text Block]
C000024404  
Shareholder Report [Line Items]  
Fund Name Columbia Variable Portfolio – Acorn International Fund
Trading Symbol WSCAX
Annual or Semi-Annual Statement [Text Block] This semi-annual shareholder report contains important information about Columbia Variable Portfolio – Acorn International Fund (the Fund) for the period of January 1, 2026 to June 30, 2026.
Additional Information [Text Block] You can find additional information about the Fund at columbiathreadneedleus.com/resources/literature. You can also request more information by contacting us at 1-800-345-6611.
Additional Information Phone Number 1-800-345-6611
Additional Information Website columbiathreadneedleus.com/resources/literature
Expenses [Text Block]

What were the Fund costs for the reporting period? 

(Based on a hypothetical $10,000 investment)

Table Summary
Fund
Cost of a $10,000 investment
Cost paid as a percentage of a $10,000 investment
Columbia Variable Portfolio – Acorn International Fund
$54
1.06%Footnote Reference(a)
Footnote Description
Footnote(a)
 Annualized
Expenses Paid, Amount $ 54
Expense Ratio, Percent 1.06% [2]
AssetsNet $ 273,760,414
Holdings Count | Holding 63
InvestmentCompanyPortfolioTurnover 26.00%
Additional Fund Statistics [Text Block]

Key Fund Statistics

Table Summary
Fund net assets
$273,760,414
Total number of portfolio holdings
63
Portfolio turnover for the reporting period
26%
Holdings [Text Block]

Geographic Allocation 

Table Summary
Japan
43.5%
Switzerland
8.1%
United Kingdom
7.9%
Italy
6.1%
France
4.7%
United States
4.4%
Germany
3.8%
Netherlands
3.0%
Ireland
2.6%
Australia
2.2%
Other
13.5%

Equity Sector Allocation

Table Summary
Industrials
35.1%
Information Technology
19.6%
Financials
9.4%
Consumer Discretionary
7.2%
Health Care
5.3%
Communication Services
4.7%
Consumer Staples
4.7%
Energy
4.6%
Materials
3.4%
Real Estate
3.0%
Largest Holdings [Text Block]

Top Holdings 

Table Summary
Prysmian SpA
3.6%
BE Semiconductor Industries NV
3.0%
Renesas Electronics Corp.
2.7%
Bank of Ireland Group PLC
2.6%
Niterra Co., Ltd.
2.6%
Carel Industries SpA
2.5%
DMG Mori Co., Ltd.
2.4%
Kraftia Corp.
2.3%
Gaztransport Et Technigaz SA
2.3%
flatexDEGIRO AG
2.3%
Material Fund Change [Text Block]
[1] Annualized
[2] Annualized