Comma-separated values or CSV is a very useful and extensively used file format. It is a text file where the comma is the delimiter that separates the values in that file. You may often need to convert these CSV files to Excel documents (.xlsx format) for various operations or calculations. In this article, we will show you how to automatically do that in several ways.
You can download the CSV file for practice from the download button below.
3 Steps to Convert CSV to Excel Automatically
Assume you have the following CSV file containing employee info. Now you need to convert the CSV file to an Excel document to be able to create a dynamic dataset.
Follow the steps below to be able to do that.
Step 1: Open CSV File with Excel
- First, go to the file location. Then right-click on the file name. Next, go to Open with >> Excel.
- Excel will automatically detect the data and arrange them into separate columns accordingly as follows. But the file is still in CSV Excel will show you a warning of Possible Data Loss with the option to Save As a different file format.
Step 2: Save CSV File as Excel Workbook
- Alternatively, you can also go to File >> Save As to convert the file format from CSV to XLSX.
Read More: How to Open Notepad or Text File in Excel with Columns (3 Easy Methods)
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Step 3: Open the Excel Workbook
- Finally, open the converted file to see the following result.
Read More: Excel VBA: Merge Multiple CSV Files into One Workbook
How to Convert CSV to Excel with Columns
Sometimes Excel may fail to detect the data and insert all data into a single column as follows. This also happens if you copy the data from the CSV file and paste it onto an Excel worksheet.
In such cases, you can use the Text to Columns wizard in Excel to extract the comma-separated values into separate columns. Alternatively, you can use the Get Data feature in Excel if the data in the CSV file has many columns. Follow the steps below to be able to do that.
- First, go to Data >> Get Data >> From File >> From Text/CSV as shown below.
- Then browse the CSV file location, select it and click Import.
- After that, you will see the following preview. Excel will try to detect and reformat the data automatically. If you are satisfied with the formatting in the preview, then click on Load (Load To for specific location). Otherwise, click on Transform Data to go to the Power Query Editor.
Read More: How to Open CSV File with Columns in Excel (3 Easy Ways)
How to Convert CSV to XLSX without Opening
Suppose you need to convert the CSV file to XLSX without opening it. Follow the steps below to be able to do that.
- First, go to File >> Options or press ALT + F + T. Then go to the Data tab, check the From Text (Legacy) checkbox, and click OK.
- Next, go to Data >> Get Data >> Legacy Wizards >> From Text (Legacy) as follows.
- After that, browse the CSV file location, select the file and click OK.
- Now the Text Import Wizard will open. Select the radio button for the Delimited file type, check My data has headers checkbox, and select Next.
- Then, check the Delimiters checkbox as required (Comma, in this case) and select Next.
- After that, you can choose the Column Data Format if needed. Click on Finish.
- Finally, select the location where you want to import the data and click OK.
Read More: Excel VBA to Convert CSV File to XLSX (2 Easy Examples)
How to Convert CSV to Excel Online
Assume you need to urgently convert a CSV file to Excel but it is not possible for you to follow the methods above. Then you can convert it online. Follow the steps below for that.
- First, go to https://cloudconvert.com/csv-to-xlsx. Then choose an option to select the CSV file and import it.
- Then click on Convert. This may take a few moments to process depending on the size of the CSV file.
- After that, you will see the Download button for the converted Excel file as shown below.
Read More: How to Convert CSV to Excel with Columns (5 Methods)
Things to Remember
- A CSV file may contain values separated by other delimiters such as semicolons (;), spaces, tabs, etc. You need to choose the delimiter accordingly during the conversion.
- If you import multiple CSV files at once using the Get Data feature, they will be converted to separate workbooks.
Conclusion
Now you know how to convert a CSV file to an Excel document automatically. Do you have any further queries or suggestions? Please let us know in the comment section below. You can also visit our ExcelDemy blog to explore more about Excel. Stay with us and keep learning.
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