What is TSV to CSV Converter?

TSV to CSV Converter turns tab-separated data into comma-separated format and back. It handles quoted fields, embedded commas, and multiline values so nothing breaks when you move data between spreadsheets and databases.

The converter parses tab delimiters and emits proper CSV: fields containing commas, quotes, or line breaks get wrapped in double quotes, and existing quotes are doubled per RFC 4180. The Quoting selector sets how much gets wrapped — Minimal quotes only fields that truly need it, Text fields only also wraps every non-numeric value (handy when a pipeline expects strings quoted but numbers bare), and All fields quotes everything for strict SQL imports. Drop or pick a file and it converts on the spot, or flip to CSV-to-TSV mode for the reverse trip.

How to use

1. Paste your TSV data (tab-separated) or upload a .tsv file using the file input.
2. Preview the parsed data table to verify the conversion looks correct before downloading.
3. Download the converted CSV file or copy the output to your clipboard.

When to use

• Exporting a tab-delimited dump from PostgreSQL or BigQuery for Excel-friendly CSV.
• Cleaning data pasted from a spreadsheet that copied as tabs, ready for a CSV-only API import.
• Round-tripping CSV into TSV before pasting back into a spreadsheet that splits on tabs cleanly.

Result

You exported a tab-separated report from a database: 'Name\tAge\tCity\nAlice\t30\tNew York'. The tool converts it to proper CSV: 'Name,Age,City\nAlice,30,"New York"' with quotes around fields containing spaces.

FAQ

Why is my CSV opening as one column in Excel?

Some Excel locales (German, French, Spanish) use semicolons as the default CSV delimiter instead of commas. Use the .xls download option, or import via Data → From Text/CSV in Excel and pick comma as the separator.

What happens to commas already inside my data?

Fields containing commas get wrapped in double quotes — so 'New York, NY' becomes "New York, NY" in the output. This follows RFC 4180 and Excel, Google Sheets, and pandas all parse it correctly.

Does the converter handle multi-line fields like addresses?

Yes. A cell containing newlines is wrapped in quotes and preserved as a single field. The parser tracks quote state correctly so the newline doesn't accidentally start a new row.

What's the difference between TSV and CSV in practice?

TSV uses tabs and rarely needs quoting because tabs are uncommon inside data. CSV uses commas which appear constantly in human-readable text, so CSV needs quoting rules. TSV is friendlier for terminal piping; CSV is the universal exchange format.

Can I convert without including the header row?

Yes. Turn off 'Has Header Row' and the first line is treated as data. The preview will label columns generically (Column 1, Column 2) instead of using the first row as field names.

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