CELLSMITH / CSV TOOLS
CSV Converter
Open a CSV and download it as an Excel .xlsx file, a tab-separated TSV or a semicolon-separated CSV.
Files are kept for up to 30 minutes after your last activity. Unsaved edits cannot be recovered after a server restart.
Conversion is one-way and keeps every cell's text exactly: 00123 stays 00123 and long IDs are not shortened. TSV and semicolon CSV change only the separator and the quotes around values that need them; the .xlsx file writes every cell as a text cell in a workbook with no formulas or formatting. Files up to 32 MiB work in the web version.
How it works
- Open a UTF-8 CSV, TSV or TXT file with the button above, or drop it into the workbench. The file passport names the detected delimiter, so you can see what you are converting from.
- In the Convert and export panel, choose Prepare Excel file, Prepare TSV file or Prepare semicolon CSV. The report says how many rows and columns will be written.
- Download the result: a .xlsx workbook, a .tsv file, or a -semicolon.csv file named after your upload. Your original is not touched and there is nothing to undo; if you edited cells first, the download contains the edited values.
What stays exactly the same
TSV and semicolon CSV change only the separator and the quoting. A value that contains the new separator, a double quote or a line break is put in quotes, with inner quotes doubled; every other value is written as it was. Leading zeros, spaces, long numbers, accents and line breaks inside a cell are unchanged.
Each row ends with the line ending your file mainly uses (CRLF or LF), and a byte-order mark or final newline in your file is kept. Line breaks inside quoted cells stay as they were. A row with fewer cells than the header keeps its own length, and a blank line is written as one empty field so it stays a row; cells beyond the header width are not kept, as when the file was opened. A program that does not read quotes may show a quoted cell with its quote marks.
The .xlsx file writes every cell as text with no formulas or formatting, and one sheet holds at most 1,048,576 rows and 16,384 columns; a larger file is refused with a message instead of being cut. cellsmith converts out of CSV only: it does not open .xlsx files, and the web version reads UTF-8 files only. Your file is uploaded to the cellsmith.app server, held in memory and deleted after the retention period; a planned desktop app is meant to convert files on your own computer and is not released yet.
Limits
Files are uploaded to the cellsmith.app server and held in memory, not kept only in your browser. The web version accepts UTF-8 text files up to 32 MiB each. Files expire 30 minutes after the last activity; opening another file or restarting the server also clears the current document and unsaved work.
Questions about this tool
How do I convert a CSV to Excel?
Open the CSV, choose Prepare Excel file in the Convert and export panel and download the .xlsx. Every cell is written as text, so Excel shows 00123 and 12345678901234567890 exactly as in your file.
How do I convert a CSV to a tab-separated (TSV) file?
Open the CSV, choose Prepare TSV file and download it. Cells that contain a tab, a double quote or a line break are put in quotes; everything else is written as it was.
Can I change commas to semicolons?
Yes. Choose Prepare semicolon CSV. Many European versions of Excel expect semicolons as the separator. Cells that contain a semicolon, a quote or a line break are quoted, and commas inside cells are left alone.
Will the values change when I convert?
No. Cell text, including leading zeros, spaces, accents and line breaks inside cells, is written exactly as stored. TSV and semicolon CSV change only the separator and quoting; the .xlsx file writes every cell as a text cell. A program that does not understand quoted cells may still show the quote marks.
Can it convert Excel files to CSV?
No. cellsmith converts from CSV to .xlsx, TSV or semicolon CSV, and does not open .xlsx files.
Is my file uploaded?
In the web version, yes: the file is sent to the cellsmith.app server to build the table, kept in memory and deleted after the retention period. The planned desktop app is meant to work on files on your own computer; it is not released yet.