How to Save as a CSV from Google Sheets

The CSV file format is very versatile, and it provides a means to view and edit data in a lot of different applications.

If you have been working on a spreadsheet in Google Sheets and you need to provide that data to someone in the .csv file type, then you may be curious about how to accomplish that.

Our tutorial below will show you how to save as a csv from Google Sheets.

How to Convert a Google Sheets File to a CSV

  1. Open your Sheets file.
  2. Click the File tab.
  3. Choose Download.
  4. Select the Comma-separated values (CSV) option.

Our article continues below with additional information on converting a Google Sheets file to a CSV file, including pictures of these steps.

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You can also turn a Google spreadsheet into a PDF file. Read this Google Sheet to PDF article and find out how.

Google Sheets is a strong competitor to Microsoft Excel and offers many of the same features found in that application.

One common action to take in Excel is creating and editing data in Excel’s user interface, then saving that data in the CSV file format.

If you have experience with Excel and are now using Sheets, then you may be wondering how to save as a CSV from Google Sheets.

While the popularity of Google Sheets has been increasing due to the large number of features that it has (and the fact that it is free), there are still occasions when you will need to work with a file in a different application.

Fortunately, Sheets makes it a simple process to download your Sheets spreadsheets in different formats, including a .csv file.

CSV files are used in many situations, and it is not unusual for a specific scenario to require a file to be in that format.

So if you have a Sheets document that needs to be converted to a .csv file, you can follow the steps below to accomplish this from directly within the application.

Find out how to let others edit your Google documents if you need to be able to share files from Docs, Sheets, or Slides.

How to Download a Spreadsheet from Google Sheets as a CSV (Guide with Pictures)

The steps in this guide are going to show you how to download a spreadsheet as a .csv file that is currently saved in Google Sheets.

Note that the .csv file format has some limitations that could affect your current sheet. For example, .csv files can’t save formatting data, so any font choices, shading colors, etc., will not be included with the downloaded file.

Additionally, a .csv file can only be one sheet. If you have a file in Google Sheets that contains multiple worksheets, you will need to download each individual sheet as its own .csv file.

Our download Google spreadsheet guide provides additional information on exporting copies of your Google Sheets file.

Step 1: Open your spreadsheet in Google Drive. You can navigate to Google Drive directly by clicking this link – https://drive.google.com.

Step 2: Click the File tab at the top of the window.

how to download as csv from google sheets

Step 3: Click the Download As option, then select the Comma-separated values option.

how to convert from google sheets to csv

The .csv version of your Sheets file will then download in your browser and you are free to edit or share it as needed. Note that the file will no longer be linked to the version of the spreadsheet in Google Drive.

If you’re having trouble finding files that you have downloaded in your browser, then our my downloads history guide for Google Chrome can show you an easy way to find them.

As mentioned previously, a file that you convert from Google Sheets to CSV is going to lose all of the formatting that you applied to the document. A CSV file is essentially a text file, much like what you would see when working with Notepad.

Comma separated value files also do not have the ability to store multiple sheets, so Google Sheets will only convert the current spreadsheet to a CSV file. If you wish to convert an entire workbook then you will need to download each individual sheet as a CSV file separately.

If you have downloaded a large number of .csv files and need to combine all of them into one document, then you might be planning to do so manually. There is actually a way to merge csv files in Windows with the command prompt, and it can be considerably faster if you have a lot of data to combine.

Frequently Asked Questions

What other types of files can I convert to from Google Sheets?

While this guide has focused on the download Google Sheet as CSV option, you can export Google Sheets to more than just the CSV format.

You can also export your Google Sheets files to the following formats:

– Microsoft Excel (.xlsx)
– OpenDocument (.ods)
– Portable Document Format (.pdf)
– Web Page (.html)
– Comma Separated Values (.csv)
– Tab Separated Values (.tsv)

What happened to my formatting after I converted to CSV in Google Sheets?

A CSV file is a special kind of text file that isn’t able to save formatting settings in the same way that an Excel file or a Word document would.

Once you convert to the .csv file format, any formatting or extra features that you created in your Google Sheets file will be removed for the CSV version of the file.

If you need to keep the formatting, then you will need to export in the Microsoft Excel format or the PDF format.

is there a way to create a new CSV file with all of the worksheets from my Sheets file?

No, unfortunately, when you choose Comma Separated Values as your file type, it can save only a single sheet to that exported file.

Additionally, that will also only work for the current Google sheet that you are editing.

If you want to save a different worksheet in your current file as a CSV file, then you will need to select the spreadsheet tab at the bottom of the window first, then click the File menu and choose the Download > CSV option.

Do you want to be able to access and edit calendar data in Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel? The method for exporting your Google Calendar to an Excel-compatible file format is described in the section that follows.

Related: How to Download an Entire Folder in Google Drive

How to Download an Excel File from a Google Calendar

The relationships between the programs and files you routinely use are frequently neither clear nor anything you think about until a scenario requires it.

See this tutorial on how to export Google Calendar to Excel for additional details.

Google Calendar data may be exported in a manner that makes dealing with it in a spreadsheet tool like Excel a pleasure. I’d never thought of using or seeing calendar data in Excel before.

  1. Go to Google Calendar in your web browser after it has opened.
  2. By selecting the three dots, you can then click Settings and Sharing.
  3. Press the button labeled “Export Calendar.”
  4. From the menu that appears when you right-click on the calendar export file, choose Extract All.
  5. Open Excel on your computer.
  6. Select Open after choosing File.
  7. Navigate to the directory where the calendar file is located.
  8. Select All Files after choosing All Excel Files .
  9. Click on the calendar file to view it.
  10. Click the Next button after deciding on Delimited.
  11. After selecting the Tab checkbox, click Finish.

Now that you know how to export from Google Calendar, you can use this technique whenever you think it would be advantageous.

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