C# CSV Parser (Step-By-Step) Tutorial

Should I Use the Visual Studio NuGet Package Manager?

The NuGet Package Manager UI is available in Visual Studio to install the package directly into the project. This method is particularly useful for developers who prefer visual interfaces and want to see package details before installation. The screenshot below shows how to open it.

Access the NuGet Package Manager in Visual Studio by navigating to Tools > NuGet Package Manager > Manage NuGet Packages for Solution

The Package Manager UI provides a Browse feature that displays a list of package libraries available on the NuGet website. Enter "IronXL" as shown in the screenshot below to find the IronXL package. You can also explore related Excel manipulation features that IronXL offers.

The NuGet Package Manager in Visual Studio displaying the IronXL.Excel library, which enables developers to read, generate, and edit Excel files in .NET applications. The package is shown with 250K downloads and version 2022.9.9454 ready for installation

Select the IronXL.Excel package and click the Install button to add it to the project. The installation process will automatically handle all dependencies and configure your project for Excel file manipulation.

When Should I Use the Visual Studio Command-Line?

In the Visual Studio menu, go to Tools > NuGet Package Manager > click on Package Manager Console. This method is preferred by developers who are comfortable with command-line interfaces or need to automate the installation process in build scripts.

Opening the NuGet Package Manager Console in Visual Studio to install CSV parsing libraries

The Package Manager Console will appear at the bottom of the screen. Type the following command and press enter. IronXL will be installed. This method is particularly useful when you need to install specific versions or when working with deployment scripts for Azure or AWS environments.

Install-Package IronXL.Excel

The Package Manager Console displays the successful installation of IronXL.Excel version 2022.11.10251, showing the package restoration process and download confirmations from the NuGet repository

How Do I Convert an XLSX File to CSV?

Open Microsoft Excel and create a new XLSX file. Populate its rows and columns with some mock data. For production scenarios, you might want to create Excel files programmatically using IronXL. The image below shows the file used for all conversions in this tutorial.

Figure 6: Sample Excel data showing a basic inventory structure that will be used to demonstrate CSV parsing in C#

Once you have your file ready, write the following example code and execute the program. IronXL handles all the complex parsing internally, including proper handling of special characters and data types:

using IronXL;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Load the XLSX file into a WorkBook object
        // The Load method automatically detects the file format
        WorkBook wb = WorkBook.Load("test.xlsx");

        // Save the WorkBook as a CSV file
        // This method handles all formatting and conversion automatically
        wb.SaveAsCsv("Parsed CSV.csv");

        // Optional: Save with custom delimiter
        // wb.SaveAsCsv("Parsed CSV.csv", delimiter: ";");
    }
}

using IronXL;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Load the XLSX file into a WorkBook object
        // The Load method automatically detects the file format
        WorkBook wb = WorkBook.Load("test.xlsx");

        // Save the WorkBook as a CSV file
        // This method handles all formatting and conversion automatically
        wb.SaveAsCsv("Parsed CSV.csv");

        // Optional: Save with custom delimiter
        // wb.SaveAsCsv("Parsed CSV.csv", delimiter: ";");
    }
}

After execution is complete, a new file named Parsed CSV.csv will be created. You can read CSV files in any editor or reader you like. You can also import the CSV data back into Excel for further manipulation. The image below shows the output of the above command—our generated CSV data. In the output file, double quotation marks represent bold values.

Figure 7: The CSV output generated by the WorkBook.SaveAsCsv method, displaying the converted Excel data in comma-separated format

What Are the Steps to Convert XLS Files to CSV?

In this example, we'll see how to convert XLS files into CSV format. The process is identical to XLSX conversion, demonstrating IronXL's versatility in handling different Excel file formats.

First, let's create an example XLS file that we can convert to CSV format. Note that XLS is an older Excel format, but IronXL handles it seamlessly alongside modern formats:

Figure 8: A sample Excel file demonstrating inventory data structure with automatic calculations, which can be parsed using C# CSV libraries

Next, we'll execute the block of code below to convert the sample XLS file into a CSV file. IronXL preserves data integrity during conversion, including formulas and calculations:

using IronXL;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Load the XLS file into a WorkBook object
        // IronXL automatically handles the older XLS format
        WorkBook wb = WorkBook.Load("XLS.xls");

        // Save the WorkBook as a CSV file
        // All formulas are evaluated and results are exported
        wb.SaveAsCsv("Example2.csv");

        // Optional: Export specific worksheet
        // WorkSheet ws = wb.GetWorkSheet("Sheet1");
        // ws.SaveAsCsv("Example2.csv");
    }
}

using IronXL;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Load the XLS file into a WorkBook object
        // IronXL automatically handles the older XLS format
        WorkBook wb = WorkBook.Load("XLS.xls");

        // Save the WorkBook as a CSV file
        // All formulas are evaluated and results are exported
        wb.SaveAsCsv("Example2.csv");

        // Optional: Export specific worksheet
        // WorkSheet ws = wb.GetWorkSheet("Sheet1");
        // ws.SaveAsCsv("Example2.csv");
    }
}

After the code above finishes executing, you'll have a newly generated CSV file. For more complex scenarios, you might want to select specific ranges or sort data before exporting.

Example CSV file opened in WordPad showing properly formatted comma-separated data with headers and multiple product entries

How Can I Parse CSV Files from TSV Format?

Spreadsheet applications frequently use TSV files, or Tab-Separated Values files, to transfer data between databases. It saves a data table with tabs separating the data columns and each record on a different line. TSV files are particularly useful when your data contains commas that might interfere with CSV parsing.

IronXL offers a CSV parser to parse CSV files from TSV format for better data management. The conversion process is straightforward and maintains data integrity throughout.

Let's get started with the example. First, we'll create a TSV file with student data:

Example of tab-separated student data displayed in Microsoft Word, showing the structure of a TSV file with columns for NAME, EMAIL, R-NO, and Grade

using IronXL;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Load the TSV file into a WorkBook object
        // IronXL automatically detects tab-separated format
        WorkBook wb = WorkBook.Load("TSV.tsv");

        // Save the WorkBook as a CSV file
        // Tabs are converted to commas automatically
        wb.SaveAsCsv("Example3.csv");

        // Alternative: Load with explicit delimiter specification
        // WorkBook wb = WorkBook.LoadCSV("TSV.tsv", delimiter: "\t");
    }
}

using IronXL;

class Program
{
    static void Main()
    {
        // Load the TSV file into a WorkBook object
        // IronXL automatically detects tab-separated format
        WorkBook wb = WorkBook.Load("TSV.tsv");

        // Save the WorkBook as a CSV file
        // Tabs are converted to commas automatically
        wb.SaveAsCsv("Example3.csv");

        // Alternative: Load with explicit delimiter specification
        // WorkBook wb = WorkBook.LoadCSV("TSV.tsv", delimiter: "\t");
    }
}

Below is the output in CSV format. Notice how IronXL has properly converted the tab-separated values to comma-separated values while maintaining the data structure:

Example CSV file opened in WordPad displaying student records with fields for name, email, roll number, and grade separated by commas