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How to Import a CSV into Excel or Google Sheets

How do I take the file I received and put it into Excel or Google Sheet?

Hunter Allred avatar
Written by Hunter Allred
Updated over 3 weeks ago

Microsoft Excel

Option 1: Double-Click

  1. Locate the downloaded CSV file

  2. Double-click the file

  3. Excel opens it automatically

Option 2: Open from Excel

  1. Open Excel

  2. Go to File > Open

  3. Navigate to your CSV file

  4. Select the file and click Open

Google Sheets

  1. Open Google Sheets

  2. Click File > Import

  3. Select the Upload tab

  4. Click Browse and select your CSV file

  5. Choose import options:

    • Import location: Create new spreadsheet (recommended)

    • Separator type: Detect automatically

  6. Click Import data

Troubleshooting

Data appears in one column (Excel)

  • Use Data > Text to Columns

  • Select "Delimited" and check "Comma"

Special characters look wrong

  • The CSV may use UTF-8 encoding

  • In Google Sheets, this is handled automatically

  • In Excel, use File > Import instead of double-clicking

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