How to Open and Edit a CSV File on iPhone
Short answer: to open and edit a CSV file on an iPhone, use CSV Viewer and Editor. It opens CSVs from Files, the clipboard or a URL, detects the delimiter and header row on its own, lets you edit cells, and compares two files cell by cell. It works offline.
Why CSVs are awkward on a phone
A CSV is plain text with commas, semicolons, tabs or pipes between values. Opened as text it is unreadable, and spreadsheet apps often mangle encoding or require a large import step.
How to open a CSV on iPhone
- Install a CSV viewer from the App Store.
- Open the file from Files or the share sheet, paste it from the clipboard, or fetch it from a URL.
- The app detects the delimiter (comma, semicolon, tab or pipe) and the header row automatically.
- Explore it as a sortable table, or switch to the raw view.
What to look for in a CSV app
- Automatic delimiter and header detection.
- Sortable table view with row search.
- Quick stats: row count, column count, empty rows, unique values, and min, max, average and sum for numeric columns.
- Cell editing, with add and delete for rows and columns.
- Repair of malformed files, such as short rows and unclosed quotes.
- A diff of two CSVs, down to the cell level.
- Offline operation.
CSV Viewer and Editor includes each of these.
Frequently asked questions
How do I open a semicolon-separated CSV on iPhone? CSV Viewer and Editor detects comma, semicolon, tab and pipe delimiters automatically.
Can I compare two CSV files on a phone? Yes. The comparison shows added, removed, changed and unchanged cells.
Can I edit a CSV without a computer? Yes. Tap any cell to edit it, or use the full text editor for bulk changes.
Download CSV Viewer and Editor on the App Store
On Android: CSV Viewer and Editor on Google Play. Free to download, same features, works offline.