CSV Best Practices

Follow these best practices to ensure your CSV files work smoothly with ExpressCSV.

Preparing Your CSV Files

Use Consistent Headers

Make sure your CSV file has clear, consistent column headers in the first row:

• Use simple, descriptive names
• Avoid special characters in headers
• Be consistent with naming conventions
• Don't use duplicate header names

Good example:

first_name,last_name,email,phone,company
John,Doe,john@example.com,555-123-4567,Acme Inc

Choose the Right Delimiter

By default, CSV files use commas (,) as separators. However, if your data contains commas, consider using another delimiter like semicolons (;) or tabs and selecting the appropriate delimiter in ExpressCSV's import settings.

Handle Special Characters

If your data contains quotes, commas, or other special characters:

• Enclose text fields with quotes (")
• Use double quotes ("") to represent a literal quote inside a quoted value

Example:

"name","description"
"Widget X","A multi-function widget, with 5"" display"

Date Formats

Use consistent date formats throughout your file. ISO format (YYYY-MM-DD) works best for international compatibility:

customer_id,purchase_date,amount
1001,2023-12-03,125.99

Example CSV Structure

Here's an example of a well-formatted CSV file:

id,first_name,last_name,email,signup_date,plan_type
1,Jane,Smith,jane@example.com,2023-01-15,premium
2,Robert,Johnson,robert@example.com,2023-02-28,basic
3,Sarah,Williams,sarah@example.com,2023-03-10,premium

Avoiding Common Mistakes

• Don't include blank lines in your CSV
• Remove summary rows or totals from the end of your data
• Ensure all rows have the same number of columns
• Check that required fields are filled in
• Verify that data types match their expected columns (e.g., numbers in number fields)

Following these guidelines will help ensure your data imports quickly and accurately through ExpressCSV.