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How to Convert CSV to TSV - Step by Step Guide

Convert comma-separated files to tab-delimited format for spreadsheets, databases, shell scripts, and data science workflows

Step 1

Input Your CSV Data

Add your CSV data from Excel, Google Sheets, PostgreSQL exports, or any other source. The parser fully handles RFC 4180 quoted fields. See also CSV to JSON, CSV to HTML, or CSV to YAML.

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Paste directly: Copy CSV from any spreadsheet or database and paste into the input editor

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Upload a file: Click "Upload" to open a .csv or .txt file directly from your computer

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Load sample: Click "Sample" to see a realistic CSV with quoted fields containing commas — perfect for testing the parser

Example: CSV with Quoted Fields

Commas inside quotes are preserved as literal commas in TSV — no extra quoting needed:

Name,City,Role,Salary
"Doe, John","New York, NY",Engineer,85000
Lisa Wang,Toronto,Designer,70000
"Rodriguez, Carlos",Madrid,Manager,75000

Step 2

Configure Parsing Options

The tool handles all edge cases automatically, but you can fine-tune the output:

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Trim whitespace: Removes leading and trailing spaces from each field — great for cleaning messy exports from pandas, MySQL, or Excel

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RFC 4180 quoted field handling: Commas inside double-quoted fields are recognized as part of the value — fully compliant with the CSV standard

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Escaped double quotes: The "" escape sequence inside quoted fields is correctly unescaped to a single " in the output

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Tab escaping: Any literal tab characters in field values are escaped as \t to maintain TSV delimiter integrity for downstream tools

Step 3

Review Your TSV Output

Your CSV is instantly converted to tab-separated values. Quoted fields are unquoted, commas in values are preserved, and all delimiters become tabs:

TSV Output Example

Commas replaced with tabs, quotes stripped, commas inside field values preserved:

Name    City    Role    Salary
Doe, John    New York, NY    Engineer    85000
Lisa Wang    Toronto    Designer    70000
Rodriguez, Carlos    Madrid    Manager    75000

Wide spaces represent tab characters in the output

Step 4

Copy or Download TSV

Use your TSV output with popular data tools and workflows:

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Paste into spreadsheets: Copy and paste directly into Excel or Google Sheets — tabs are automatically recognized as column separators

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Download as .tsv file: For import into PostgreSQL COPY, MySQL LOAD DATA, or pandas read_csv

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Use in CLI tools: Feed into shell scripts using awk, cut -f, or sort pipelines for fast server-side data processing

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Data science workflows: Load with pandas read_csv(sep='\t') or R read.tsv() for immediate data analysis

What is CSV to TSV Conversion?

CSV (Comma-Separated Values) and TSV (Tab-Separated Values) are both plain text formats for tabular data. TSV uses tab characters as field delimiters instead of commas, making it naturally suited for data containing commas — such as names, addresses, or product descriptions.

TSV is natively supported by PostgreSQL COPY, MySQL LOAD DATA INFILE, pandas, R, and virtually every data science and database tool. You can also convert CSV to YAML, JSON, or SQL.

CSV vs TSV: When to Use Which

Prefer TSV when:

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Field values contain commas (e.g., names like "Smith, John", addresses like "London, UK")

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Processing with shell tools: awk, cut, sort, or grep

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Importing into PostgreSQL or MySQL with tab as the delimiter option

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Working with bioinformatics or scientific data tools that default to TSV

Stick with CSV when:

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Sharing with non-technical users who open files by double-clicking in Excel

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Working with systems or APIs that only accept the .csv format

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Field values don't contain commas, so quoting isn't needed

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Maximum compatibility with legacy software and import wizards is required

Frequently Asked Questions

Why convert CSV to TSV?

TSV eliminates ambiguity when data fields contain commas. Values like "Smith, John" or "New York, NY" need no quoting in TSV since tabs are the delimiter — making output simpler to process with awk, pandas, and database import tools.

Are RFC 4180 quoted fields handled correctly?

Yes, the parser fully handles RFC 4180 CSV quoting. Commas inside quoted fields are preserved as literal commas in the TSV output. Escaped double quotes ("") are also correctly unescaped to a single ".

What happens if field values contain tabs?

Any literal tab characters within field values are automatically escaped as \t to prevent them from being misread as TSV column delimiters by downstream tools.

Can I paste the TSV directly into Excel or Google Sheets?

Yes! Copy the TSV output and paste into Excel or Google Sheets — both apps automatically detect tab separators and split values into columns correctly.

How do I use TSV with pandas in Python?

Download the .tsv file and load it with: pd.read_csv('data.tsv', sep='\t'). TSV is fully compatible with pandas read_csv() using the tab separator parameter.

Is this tool free with no limits?

Yes, completely free with no usage caps, no file size restrictions, and no registration required.

What other CSV conversions are available?

Convert CSV to JSON, XML, HTML, YAML, SQL, Excel, and more.

CSV to TSV Converter - Convert CSV Files to Tab-Separated Values Online