3 Ways to Open a CSV File

Table of contents:

2024 Author: Samantha Chapman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 09:13

Comma Separated Values (CSV) files contain tabular data in plain text format and may consist for example of a list of email addresses. Although they can be opened with many other programs, such as a text editor, the data they contain is best viewed with a spreadsheet, such as Microsoft Excel, OpenOffice Calc or Google Sheets. You have to select "Open" from the "File" menu, select the CSV file and, if the data is not visible correctly, set the parameters related to the text delimiter. The steps to take with Google Sheets are the same, with the difference that you need to upload the file to Google's server. Keep your data in order and well organized!

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Microsoft Excel

Step 1. Launch Microsoft Excel on your computer

Step 2. Click on the "File" menu and select "Open"

This menu is located in the upper left corner and opens a window from which you can browse your computer's data.

Alternatively, you can press Ctrl + O (Windows) or ⌘ Cmd + O (Mac) to execute the same instruction

Step 3. Select the CSV file and click "Open"

The file will open and appear in a new Excel spreadsheet.

Step 4. Click on the "Data" tab to access the "Text in Columns" wizard (optional)

If Excel displays all the text of the CSV file in one column, this will allow the program to better analyze the data. The "Data" tab is located on the top menu bar and displays a number of options specific to the data format.

If you want to split only a few columns, click and drag the slider until the columns you are interested in are highlighted

Step 5. Click on "Text in Columns"

This button is one of the options on the "Tab" tab and opens the "Text to Columns" wizard.

Step 6. Select the "Delimited" option, then click "Next"

The delimiter establishes a boundary between sections of data within a text file (in this case, the delimiter is the comma).

Step 7. Check the "Comma" box and then click "Finish"

All text that was previously separated by commas will now be divided into distinct and specific columns.

Method 2 of 3: OpenOffice Calc

Step 1. Download the Openoffice suite and open Calc

Select your operating system from the drop-down menu and click "Download full version (recommended)". Run the installation procedure and choose which OpenOffice products to download. The only one you need to open a CSV file is OpenOffice Calc.

OpenOffice is free software

Step 2. Click on the "File" menu and select "Open"

This menu is located in the upper left corner and opens a window from which you can browse your computer's data.

Step 3. Select the CSV file and click "Open"

The file will open in a new OpenOffice Calc spreadsheet.

Step 4. Click on the "Data" menu and select "Columned Text" (optional)

If OpenOffice Calc does not separate the data correctly, you can set the delimiter yourself.. The "Data" menu is located on the top menu bar.

If you want to split only a few columns, click and drag the slider until the columns you are interested in are highlighted

Step 5. Select the "Separate" single choice button

It is located under the heading "Hyphenation Options".

Step 6. Check the "Comma" box and then click "OK"

All text that was previously separated by commas will now be divided into distinct and specific columns.

Method 3 of 3: Google Sheets

Step 1. Open your browser, go to the Google Sheets page and authenticate with your Google account

Enter your identification and password and click on "Next".

Google Sheets is free to access, but you must have a Google account. If you don't have it, click on "Create an account" and follow the directions given online to create a Google ID and password.
Google Sheets can also be used by switching from the source product, Google Drive.

Step 2. Click on "Open File Selector"

This button is represented by a folder icon and appears in the upper right corner of the page. Clicking on it opens the "Open a file" dialog.

Step 3. Click on the "Upload" tab

This action displays an interface through which you can upload the CSV file.

Step 4. Select and drag the file into the upload window

Once the upload has started, a progress bar will appear.

Alternatively, you can click on the "Select a file from your computer" button in the center of the upload window and select the file from those contained on your computer

Step 5. Wait for the file to upload

Once the upload is complete, the file will automatically open in Google Sheets.

This process can take anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes, depending on the size of the file.
Google Sheets will automatically separate all data using the comma as the field delimiter.

4 Ways to Open an XML File

XML (eXtensible Markup Language) files are not active content, that is, they do not perform any operations, they are simply a means of storing data and information, making them easily accessible to other programs. The software that uses the XML language to store their data are numerous.

3 Ways to Open a '.Dat' File

This article shows you how to open a DAT file on a Windows or Mac computer. To do this, you need to use the same program that created the file. If you do not know this information, before you can access the contents of the DAT file in question, you need to find out which software generated it.

4 Ways to Open a VCF File

This article shows you how to add a contact to your email account address book using a VCF file. VCF files, also known as "vCard", store a user's contact information internally that can be easily imported into the address book of any e-mail service, such as Gmail, iCloud and Yahoo, or any client, such as Microsoft Outlook.

3 Ways to Open a WPS File

The WPS file format is one of the proprietary formats of the Microsoft Works suite of products. WPS files can be opened using Microsoft Word on Windows or a third party program on Mac. Alternatively, a web file conversion service or online viewer can be used.

3 Ways to Open PPT File on PC and Mac

This article explains how to open and view the contents of a PPT file (a PowerPoint presentation) using a Windows computer or a Mac. The PPT file format is the proprietary format of Microsoft PowerPoint and is supported by all versions of the program.

Table of contents:

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Microsoft Excel

Step 1. Launch Microsoft Excel on your computer

Step 2. Click on the "File" menu and select "Open"

Alternatively, you can press Ctrl + O (Windows) or ⌘ Cmd + O (Mac) to execute the same instruction

Step 3. Select the CSV file and click "Open"

Step 4. Click on the "Data" tab to access the "Text in Columns" wizard (optional)

If you want to split only a few columns, click and drag the slider until the columns you are interested in are highlighted

Step 5. Click on "Text in Columns"

Step 6. Select the "Delimited" option, then click "Next"

Step 7. Check the "Comma" box and then click "Finish"

Method 2 of 3: OpenOffice Calc

Step 1. Download the Openoffice suite and open Calc

OpenOffice is free software

Step 2. Click on the "File" menu and select "Open"

Step 3. Select the CSV file and click "Open"

Step 4. Click on the "Data" menu and select "Columned Text" (optional)

If you want to split only a few columns, click and drag the slider until the columns you are interested in are highlighted

Step 5. Select the "Separate" single choice button

Step 6. Check the "Comma" box and then click "OK"

Method 3 of 3: Google Sheets

Step 1. Open your browser, go to the Google Sheets page and authenticate with your Google account

Step 2. Click on "Open File Selector"

Step 3. Click on the "Upload" tab

Step 4. Select and drag the file into the upload window

Alternatively, you can click on the "Select a file from your computer" button in the center of the upload window and select the file from those contained on your computer

Step 5. Wait for the file to upload

Recommended: