A CSV file is a comma separated values file commonly used by spreadsheet programs such as Microsoft Excel or OpenOffice Calc. It contains plain text data sets separated by commas with each new line in the CSV file representing a new database row and each database row consisting of one or more fields separated by a comma. CSV files are often opened by spreadsheet programs to be organized into cells or used for transferring data between databases.

CSV file open in Microsoft Excel 2016 The CSV data exchange format is supported by a large amount of personal, business, and scientific programs. Because of its wide support the format is especially useful in transferring tabular data between programs. The file is also helpful for transferring data saved in a proprietary format, such as an .XLSX file, into another program that does not support the XLSX format. For example, you can export thousands of contacts from an email service to a CSV file then import the file into an address organizer or another email service.