Exporting Data to CSV Files
When you need to share only the data from an Excel worksheet, you can export it to a comma-separated values (CSV) file. CSV is a very widely used standard for data exchange and consists of text with commas separating the contents of each cell. So when you export a worksheet to a CSV file, you export only the text—Excel strips out all formatting and nontext objects, such as charts or pictures.
To export a worksheet to a CSV file, follow these steps:
- If the workbook contains any unsaved changes, save it.
- Make active the worksheet you want to export.
- Choose File
Save As fromthe menu bar to display the Save As dialog box. - Specify the filename and choose the folder as usual.
- In the Format pop-up menu, choose Comma Separated Values (.csv).
- Click the Save button. If the workbook contains more than one worksheet, Excel displays the dialog box shown in Figure 13–5, which warns you that it can't save the workbook in CSV format because it contains multiple worksheets.
Figure 13–5. Click the Save Active Sheet button in this dialog box to export only the active worksheet to a CSV file.
- Click the Save Active Sheet button to proceed with exporting just the active worksheet. If the worksheet contains any nontext items that Excel will need to strip out to create the CSV file, Excel displays the dialog box shown in Figure 13–6, warning you that it will remove some features. Most worksheets contain items that Excel will need to remove, so you'll usually see this dialog box.
Figure 13–6. If Excel warns you that it needs to remove features to create the CSV file, click the Continue button.
- Click the Continue button. Excel ceases its protests and saves the worksheet as a CSV file.
CAUTION: After you save a worksheet as a CSV file, Excel changes the workbook's window name to that of the CSV file but continues to display the full workbook with all the nontext objects and other worksheets that the CSV conversion has stripped out. Don't work in this workbook, because you're not seeing the CSV file as it actually is. Instead, click the Close button or choose File 
Close to close the workbook. When Excel prompts you to save the changes you made to the workbook, click the Don't Save button—there aren't any changes you can save in this format. Then choose File Open Recent and click the CSV file on the Open Recent submenu. You'll then see the CSV file as it actually is.