Documents and formatsExplanation
What can a CSV file store, and what does it leave out?
CSV stores rows of text fields. It can carry names, codes and values, but it does not preserve a spreadsheet workbook's sheets, styling, charts or calculation features.
A CSV file stores records as text fields, commonly separated by commas. It carries a table’s values, not a complete spreadsheet workbook. Column headings can describe the fields, but the CSV format alone does not give them spreadsheet styling or enforced data types.
A small representation
This example is illustrative: two fictional register entries, with an identifier, label, count and date.
id,label,count,checked_on
0012,"Register, west",8,2026-10-21
0013,Register east,5,2026-10-21There are four fields per record. The comma inside Register, west belongs to the label because that field is quoted. The first line supplies column names. 0012 is a sequence of characters in the file; whether an importing application keeps it as an identifier or interprets it as a number is a separate decision.
RFC 4180, section 2, documents a common CSV convention, including an optional header, comma-separated fields and quoting for embedded commas, line breaks and quotation marks. It is an informational RFC, not a promise that every application uses an identical dialect.
What stays, and what does not?
| Information | In a plain CSV |
|---|---|
| Names, identifiers and numeric-looking values | Represented as text fields |
| Column names | Can be supplied in a header record |
| Fonts, cell colours, charts and sheet layout | Not preserved as workbook features |
| Multiple spreadsheet tabs and live calculation relationships | Not preserved as a workbook |
A file can contain formula-like text, but CSV does not itself supply a spreadsheet calculation system. Do not assume that saving a workbook to CSV preserves its formulas as working workbook formulas.
For a specific application example, Microsoft documents Excel’s CSV export limitations: the comma-delimited format saves displayed text and values from the active worksheet and loses formatting and other worksheet features. That describes Excel’s export, not every possible CSV producer.
Conditions that matter
Agree the delimiter, character encoding, header and meaning of each field with the receiving system. Check import settings before treating identifiers, dates or numbers as correctly interpreted: Microsoft’s text-import guidance describes Excel’s automatic interpretation and import options.
Source documentation checked on 21 October 2026. This example represents data; it is not a claim of testing a particular export or import application.