CSV guides
Why CSV files break when they pass through Excel and other tools, and how to fix them.
- Why Excel removes leading zeros from CSV files (and how to keep them)
Excel turns 02134 into 2134 when it opens a CSV. Here’s why it happens, how to import ZIP codes, phone numbers and IDs as text, and what to do if the zeros are already gone.
- Fix CSV encoding: weird characters like é and � in your CSV
“Café” instead of “Café”? Question marks in diamonds? Learn what each symptom means, how to save a CSV as UTF-8 from Excel, and how to convert an existing file.
- Why Excel turns long numbers into scientific notation (1.23E+15) in CSV files
Order IDs, barcodes and tracking numbers become 1.23457E+15 after Excel touches a CSV. Why it happens, why the digits are lost on save, and how to prevent it.