Excel to CSV
Convert .xlsx or .xls files to clean CSV. Pick which sheet to export from multi-sheet workbooks.
By Operelio team
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What it does
Converts an Excel workbook (.xlsx or .xls) into a standard CSV file. If your workbook has multiple sheets, you pick which one to export. The output is a UTF-8 CSV with the same rows and columns as the sheet you chose.
When to use it
Use this when you need a CSV for import into another system (a database, a CRM, a marketing tool) and your source data is in Excel format. Also useful if you want to work with the data in a text editor, pass it to a script, or feed it into another Operelio tool that works better with CSV.
How to use it
Upload your Excel file
Drag a .xlsx or .xls file into the upload area.
Select a sheet
If your workbook has more than one sheet, a dropdown appears. Pick the sheet you want. If there is only one sheet, this step is skipped.
Run
Click Run. Your CSV is ready to download within a few seconds.
What to know
Operelio reads the calculated values from cells, not the underlying formulas. If a cell contains =A1+B1 and the result is 100, the CSV will contain 100.
The output is UTF-8 encoded CSV with comma delimiters. If a cell contains commas, the value is wrapped in quotes.
Trailing blank rows and trailing blank columns are trimmed. Blank cells in the middle of the data are kept as empty values so row alignment stays intact.
If the selected sheet is empty (no rows of data), the job will fail with an error. Pick a different sheet or check your file.
Row limits apply to every job: 2,000 on Free, 50,000 on Pro, 75,000 on Team, 150,000 on Agency. If your file is larger, Operelio processes the first N rows up to your plan's limit and shows a banner on the results page with your file's total row count, the limit that was applied, and the number of rows processed.
How your data is handled
Every cell type is converted to the format most CRMs, databases, and import tools expect. The examples below map what Operelio writes to the CSV for the cases that tend to trip up other converters.
| Excel cell | CSV output | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 01234 | 01234 | Leading zeros preserved on text-formatted ZIPs, SKUs, and codes. No silent strip to 1234. |
| 07123456789 | 07123456789 | UK mobiles and long numeric IDs stay as text. No scientific notation like 7.12E+09. |
| 2026-01-15 | 2026-01-15 | Dates export in ISO format, with no spurious 00:00:00 time component. |
| =A1+B1 (shows 45) | 45 | Formulas evaluate to their current value. No = prefix leaks into the CSV. |
| TRUE | TRUE | Booleans export as uppercase TRUE / FALSE, which is what machine readers expect. |
| café, über-friendly | "café, über-friendly" | UTF-8 preserves accents and non-Latin scripts. Commas in cell values are auto-quoted. |
If you open the exported CSV in Excel and see garbled accents, Excel is guessing the encoding wrong. Open it via Data > From Text/CSV and pick "65001: Unicode (UTF-8)" instead of double-clicking the file.
What the results show
After the job finishes you land on a results page that walks through the output. Expect to see:
Plain-language summary
A one-line sentence describing what was converted. For example: Converted "Deals" to a CSV with 847 rows and 14 columns.
Stat cards
Total rows and total columns in the output CSV.
Sheet used
Which sheet was converted (matches the one you picked, or the single sheet if the workbook had only one).
Other sheets
If your workbook had more than one sheet, a list of the sheets that were not converted so you can run the tool again for a different sheet without reopening the file.
Preview
The first 25 rows of the CSV so you can spot-check the output before downloading.
Download or hand off
Download the CSV, or pass it to another Operelio tool such as Clean Headers, Deduplicate, or CRM Formatter.
Frequently asked questions
Does it keep formulas or formatting?
No. Formulas are resolved to their calculated values, and cell formatting (colors, bold, borders) is stripped. The CSV contains the raw data only.
Can I convert multiple sheets at once?
Not in a single job. Run one job per sheet, or use a Workflow to chain multiple conversions.
What plan do I need?
Excel to CSV is available on all plans, including Free.
What happens to merged cells?
The value appears in the top-left cell of the merged range. Every other cell in the merge is blank in the CSV, which is how most CRMs expect the data.
What happens to blank rows and columns?
Trailing blank rows and trailing blank columns are trimmed. Blank cells in the middle of the data are kept as empty values so row alignment is preserved.
How long is my data kept on your servers?
Uploaded files and outputs are retained for 24 hours on Free, 30 days on Pro, 30 days on Team, and 90 days on Agency. After that, they are permanently deleted from storage. You can delete any file manually at any time on any plan.
Can I automate Excel to CSV via an API?
Yes, on the Team and Agency plans. You get API access to upload files, trigger jobs, and download results programmatically. Team includes 1,000 API calls per month and Agency 5,000, at 60 requests per minute. Free and Pro use the web tool only.
Ready to get started?
Upload a file and run your first transformation. Free, no credit card required.