Why does my CSV open in one column?
The receiving application may be looking for a different separator than the file uses. Changing the data is not always necessary.
Read a recognizable record first.
Consider 00124;Notebook;4,50. With a semicolon separator, the three values are 00124, Notebook and 4,50. Treating every comma as a separator would split the price and leave the rest together. A decimal comma is part of the value.
Check before converting.
- Use the CSV inspector and compare the delimiter candidates.
- Check that the preview separates a known record into the intended fields. A high consistency count is evidence, not proof.
- If your application lets you select the separator during import, use the original file and choose that separator.
- If the destination explicitly requires a different separator, use the delimiter converter and inspect the output.
Why replacing punctuation is unsafe.
A global replacement can alter decimal values, addresses and notes. Proper conversion parses fields first, then quotes any field containing the new separator. For example, the price 4,50 becomes "4,50" in a comma-delimited file. It has not become 4.50.
When detection cannot decide.
A single line such as a,b;c can be split plausibly either way. The tool needs your knowledge of the source. Select the intended delimiter; do not trust a guessed label simply because the file extension is .csv.
What about Excel?
Use a text/CSV import workflow rather than assuming double-clicking will interpret the file correctly. Select the delimiter in its preview, and check column types separately. The interface varies by Excel edition. Microsoft’s import/export documentation explains delimiter settings and regional behavior.