Staaarter

CSV to PSV Converter

Parses comma-delimited CSV and re-serializes it using the pipe character `|` as the field delimiter, a common choice for data that already contains many commas, like addresses, prose fields, or currency-formatted numbers. A free online tool from Staaarter, right in your browser.

Runs locallyUpdated 2026-07-29
By Staaarter Team
conversiondelimiter

Overview

Introduction

Data that already contains a lot of commas, addresses, free-text notes, currency values, can be awkward as CSV, since almost every field needs quoting. This tool converts standard comma CSV into pipe-delimited PSV, a format chosen specifically to sidestep that.

It parses the CSV structurally first, so only genuine field-separating commas are replaced, not commas that legitimately belong inside quoted values.

What Is CSV to PSV Converter?

A delimiter-conversion tool that re-parses comma-separated values and re-serializes the same rows and columns using the pipe character `|` as the field separator instead.

PSV is a real, named, widely used format in data engineering and legacy database exports, chosen precisely because pipes rarely collide with real-world text content.

How CSV to PSV Converter Works

The input is parsed character by character with the comma as the delimiter, correctly handling quoted fields that contain commas, pipes, or embedded newlines.

The resulting grid of cells is re-serialized using pipes, with any cell containing a pipe, quote, or newline automatically wrapped in quotes.

When To Use CSV to PSV Converter

Use it when your data contains many literal commas and you want a delimiter that needs quoting far less often.

It's also useful for feeding data into legacy systems, mainframe exports, or database bulk-load tools that specifically expect pipe-delimited input.

Often used alongside PSV to CSV Converter, CSV to SSV Converter and CSV Delimiter Changer.

Features

Advantages

  • Correctly handles RFC 4180 quoting, so quoted fields containing commas or pipes convert without corruption.
  • Reduces how often quoting is needed downstream, since pipes rarely appear naturally in real-world text.
  • Runs entirely client-side, so your data never leaves the browser.

Limitations

  • Assumes the input is comma-delimited; already-pipe-delimited or other-delimited input should go through the matching converter or the general CSV Delimiter Changer instead.
  • If your data does happen to contain literal pipe characters, those fields will still need quoting, PSV isn't magic, just statistically less quoting-prone for typical text.

Examples

Converting a small CSV to PSV

Input

id,name,active
1,Ada Lovelace,true
2,Alan Turing,false

Output

id|name|active
1|Ada Lovelace|true
2|Alan Turing|false

Each comma between fields becomes a pipe; the row and column layout is otherwise unchanged.

Best Practices & Notes

Best Practices

  • Check whether your data contains literal pipe characters before converting, if so, those fields will need quoting just like commas would in CSV.
  • Confirm the destination system actually expects pipe-delimited input; some tools autodetect the delimiter from a sample.
  • Pair with PSV to CSV to verify a round trip reproduces your original data.

Developer Notes

This is a two-step pipeline over the shared CSV grid parser: parse with `,` as the delimiter, then re-stringify the same grid with `|` as the delimiter. Both steps share the same RFC 4180-aware escaping logic used by every other delimiter converter in this category.

CSV to PSV Converter Use Cases

  • Converting comma-heavy address or free-text data into a delimiter that needs less quoting
  • Preparing data for a legacy database bulk-load tool or mainframe export format that expects pipes
  • Producing pipe-delimited output for data engineering pipelines that standardize on PSV

Common Mistakes

  • Assuming pipe-delimited data never needs quoting; fields containing a literal pipe character still do.
  • Running already-pipe-delimited data through this tool expecting auto-detection; it always parses the input as comma-delimited first.

Tips

  • If your source data is mostly numeric IDs and codes with occasional commas in a few text fields, PSV can make the file noticeably easier to read unquoted.
  • Use PSV to CSV afterward to double-check the conversion is reversible for your data.

References

Frequently Asked Questions